Bradford Campbell Quoted in Advisor One and Investment News
Washington, D.C., counsel Bradford Campbell was quoted in Advisor One and Investment News on an “unusual dry spell” for the Labor Department's Employee Benefits Security Administration.
Advisor One noted Brad’s comments at the Insured Retirement Institute's (IRI) government, legal and regulatory conference, where he predicted that the DOL won't release its reproposed fiduciary rule until after the presidential election in November.
Investment News noted Brad’s comment that the DOL has not sent a rule proposal to the White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) within the last six months. “I can't recall a time when the pipeline has been completely empty for six months,” he said.
He added, however, that if President Obama wins re-election, the DOL's rule amending the definition of fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), will quickly appear at OMB.
“Will we see much more aggressive regulation when there's not an election on the horizon? I fear we will,” said Brad.
Brad said that the original fiduciary proposal would have prevented brokers from earning compensation from IRA transactions..
He expressed a hope that a clarified sales exemption will sort out this area.
“The way it was written [in the original proposal] was very ambiguous,” he said. “How it is articulated in the new proposal might address some of these concerns.”