NAIFA President Terry K. Headley to Testify at Congressional Hearing on Regulation of Financial Advisors
Testimony before the Capital Markets Subcommittee will highlight potential damages to advisors and their clients by an inflexible universal fiduciary duty.
Contacts:
Mark Briscoe
Senior Director of Strategic Communications
703-770-8111
FALLS CHURCH, VA (September 9) – Terry K. Headley, president of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, will testify Tuesday, Sept. 13, on behalf of NAIFA members and their clients at a congressional hearing on the regulation and oversight of broker-dealers and investment advisers. The hearing before the House Committee on Financial Services’ Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises Subcommittee will focus on the effectiveness of standards of care for broker-dealers and investment advisers and on the need for enhanced examination and enforcement resources for investment advisers.
Headley’s testimony comes the day before more than 1,000 NAIFA members will participate in a “Day on the Hill” in which they will meet with congressional members and staffers from across the country to discuss the potential impacts of health care, financial services and tax reform on their careers, their business and their clients.
Headley will tell the subcommittee the important role NAIFA members fill in the financial services industry, serving the needs of middle-market American investors. He will discuss the potential impact of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s expected standard-of-care regulation on broker-dealers and their clients. Specifically, Headley will testify about:
- The potential for SEC and DOL regulations on standard of care to adversely impact the ability of lower and middle-market investors to receive personalized investment advice and other important services,
- The comprehensive rules and regulations imposed by the SEC and FINRA that currently apply to NAIFA members and provide strong consumer protections, and
- NAIFA’s recommendation that FINRA serve as the self-regulatory organization to conduct periodic examinations of SEC-registered investment advisers.
“I am grateful for this opportunity to testify before members of Congress on issues that are so important to NAIFA members and to consumers,” said Headley. “A one-size-fits-all fiduciary standard, especially one imposed hastily without sufficient economic impact studies, could have devastating unintended consequences for the very people Dodd-Frank was designed to protect – middle-income investors who want to secure their financial futures, but can’t afford the services of exclusive wealth managers.”
NAIFA has been at the forefront of the financial services standard of care debate, beginning even before the passage of Dodd-Frank. Headley has provided expert commentary and analysis on the issue to numerous national media outlets and government officials.
Headley and other NAIFA members participating in September 14 Day on the Hill are in Washington for NAIFA’s 122nd Annual Meeting and Career Conference, Sept. 10-14.
About NAIFA: NAIFA comprises more than 600 state and local associations representing the interests of approximately 200,000 agents and their associates nationwide. NAIFA members focus their practices on one or more of the following: life insurance and annuities, health insurance and employee benefits, multiline, and financial advising and investments. The Association’s mission is to advocate for a positive legislative and regulatory environment, enhance business and professional skills, and promote the ethical conduct of its members.
NAIFA, 2901 Telestar Court, Falls Church, VA 22042-1205 | 877-866-2432 |