The top lobbyist for the Investment Adviser Association said Friday that he believes House Financial Services Committee Chairman Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., will release a revised discussion draft of his bill calling for a self-regulatory organization (SRO) for advisors this year, in the second session of the 112th Congress.
"If Bachus is determined to push [his SRO] legislation, he can get it through his committee—maybe on a party-line vote—but he can get it to the floor of the House," said Neil Simon, VP for government relations at IAA, during IAA's annual compliance conference in Arlington, Va, just outside Washington.
While action on the floor of the House "is uncertain" as the SRO issue is not a high priority for lawmakers in this presidential election year, it's "extremely likely there will be renewed interest [in the SRO issue] in the next Congress."
In the Senate, while there's been little interest on the SRO issue, Simon (left) predicts Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., chairman of the Senate Banking Committee's Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment, may likely hold a hearing on Section 914 of Dodd-Frank this year.
