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December 22, 2010

CREW Files FOIA Appeal Regarding SEC Oversight Records

Securities and Exchange Commission HeadquartersToday CREW filed an administrative appeal from the refusal of the Securities and Exchange Commission to provide any records related to the SEC's oversight of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) in response to our FOIA request.  FINRA and FASB are powerful but private regulatory bodies that regulate U.S. securities firms and set accounting standards for public companies.  CREW's request seeks records related to the SEC's oversight of these bodies, which themselves are not subject to the FOIA.  Both organizations have faced criticism for their lack of transparency and enforcement, particularly in the aftermath of recent financial scandals.

To date, the SEC has refused to provide any records requested by CREW.  The SEC claimed an unidentified number of records are exempt from disclosure under FOIA because they are purely internal rules, examination reports that may be withheld, or protected by the attorney-client, attorney-work product, or deliberative process privileges.  However, the SEC provided no information about its search, and failed to even describe any of the records.  While these failures make it impossible to assess if or how any of the claimed FOIA exemptions apply, it appears that most if not all of the requested records do not fall under the exemptions asserted by the SEC.

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