Compliance Avenue

Yesterday, SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro, during her Testimony Concerning Oversight of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission: Evaluating Present Reforms and Future Challenges, which she gave before the United States House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, stated that the Commission expects to hire approximately 800 new positions during the course of the implementation.

“The President’s proposed FY 2011 budget included a request for $24 million to begin implementation of the President’s financial reform proposal,” stated Chairman Schapiro.

“With the specific provisions of the legislation in place, we have been working to develop estimates of the resources that will be needed to achieve the full implementation of Congress’ regulatory reform mandate. While the dollar cost of full implementation will depend greatly on the effective date of new rules, the timing of hiring, and other factors, we currently estimate that the SEC will need to add approximately 800 new positions over time in order to carry out the new or expanded responsibilities given to the agency by the legislation.”

On the issue of how to manage the agency’s growth, Chairman Schapiro stated:

While the budget request anticipates significant growth in the size of the SEC, the agency is properly positioned to implement this plan. To accomplish the hiring of hundreds of new staff during the course of FY 2011, the SEC is enhancing its human resources staff and, consistent with its current authorities, streamlining its hiring process.

Improvements include simplifying the application process and maintaining a searchable database of applicants, so that it is possible to interview for a vacancy as soon as it appears rather than having to go through the lengthy posting process each time. Being able to better tailor, target and speed recruiting will enhance the quality of applicants and help the agency acquire the necessary talent to perform effectively in an increasingly complex financial environment.