WASHINGTON - The House securities subcommittee has confirmed that on Thursday it will hold a hearing on whether regulation of the municipal securities market should be tightened.
The House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on telecommunications and finance, which has jurisdiction over securities legislation, tentatively scheduled the hearing two weeks ago for Sept. 9, but did not say until Friday that the date was firm.
Testifying at the hearing, which is to begin at 9:30 a.m., will be Arthur Levitt, the Securities and Exchange Commission's new chairman; Charles Fish, chairman of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board; and John Pinto, executive vice president of regulation for the National Association of Securities Dealers.
The officials are to outline the results of studies their groups have conducted during the last three months over whether new regulations or legislation are needed to curb political contributions by dealers to issuers, improve secondary market disclosure, and give regulators more direct authority over bond issuers.
Rep. Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., the chairman of the securities panel, said the hearings are being held because "investors need to have confidence in the municipal market's fundamental fairness and integrity, assurances that the laws governing the market are being vigorously enforced, access to critical market information, and adequate protections against unfair and abusive sales and trading practices."
