The AARP, another member of the consortium, is also awaiting results of expert testing on the best-interest proposals. While the SEC’s investor roundtables give retirement savers a “value opportunity” to voice their opinions, they won’t take the place of rigorous testing, AARP Legislative Counsel David Certner said.
“AARP believes that the SEC’s final rule should clearly define the standard of conduct for investment professionals as a ‘fiduciary standard,’ and provide investors with unambiguous, effective disclosure forms that have been rigorously tested,” Certner said.
“We know through many years of working on this issue and consumer feedback that investors do not understand the different legal standards, or the disclosure forms that apply to different types of financial professionals, so we need to ensure that the forms have clear language,” he added.
The SEC has made no formal announcement regarding the release of formal investor testing results and has not, as yet, extended the August 7 comment period on its best interest proposals.
The SEC’s four investor roundtables kick off next week, as follows:
• Miami - Monday, July 9.
• Washington, D.C. - Thursday, July 12.
• Philadelphia - Tuesday, July 17.
• Denver - Wednesday, July 25.