OFFICE OF THE INVESTOR ADVOCATE.

SEC. 915. OFFICE OF THE INVESTOR ADVOCATE. Section 4 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78d) is amended by adding at the end the following:“(g) Office of the Investor Advocate.—“(1) Office established.—There is established within the Commission the Office of the Investor Advocate (in this subsection referred to as the ‘Office’).124 STAT. 1831“(2) Investor advocate.—“(A) In general.—The head of the Office shall be the Investor Advocate, who shall—“(i) report directly to the Chairman; and“(ii) be appointed by the Chairman, in consultation with the Commission, from among individuals having experience in advocating for the interests of investors in securities and investor protection issues, from the perspective of investors.“(B) Compensation.—The annual rate of pay for the Investor Advocate shall be equal to the highest rate of annual pay for other senior executives who report to the Chairman of the Commission.“(C) Limitation on service.—An individual who serves as the Investor Advocate may not be employed by the Commission—“(i) during the 2-year period ending on the date of appointment as Investor Advocate; or“(ii) during the 5-year period beginning on the date on which the person ceases to serve as the Investor Advocate.“(3) Staff of office.—The Investor Advocate, after consultation with the Chairman of the Commission, may retain or employ independent counsel, research staff, and service staff, as the Investor Advocate deems necessary to carry out the functions, powers, and duties of the Office.“(4) Functions of the investor advocate.—The Investor Advocate shall—“(A) assist retail investors in resolving significant problems such investors may have with the Commission or with self-regulatory organizations;“(B) identify areas in which investors would benefit from changes in the regulations of the Commission or the rules of self-regulatory organizations;“(C) identify problems that investors have with financial service providers and investment products;“(D) analyze the potential impact on investors of—“(i) proposed regulations of the Commission; and“(ii) proposed rules of self-regulatory organizations registered under this title; and“(E) to the extent practicable, propose to the Commission changes in the regulations or orders of the Commission and to Congress any legislative, administrative, or personnel changes that may be appropriate to mitigate problems identified under this paragraph and to promote the interests of investors.“(5) Access to documents.—The Commission shall ensure that the Investor Advocate has full access to the documents of the Commission and any self-regulatory organization, as necessary to carry out the functions of the Office.“(6) Annual reports.—“(A) Report on objectives.—“(i) In general.—Not later than June 30 of each year after 2010, the Investor Advocate shall submit to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives a report on 124 STAT. 1832 the objectives of the Investor Advocate for the following fiscal year.“(ii) Contents.—Each report required under clause (i) shall contain full and substantive analysis and explanation.“(B) Report on activities.—“(i) In general.—Not later than December 31 of each year after 2010, the Investor Advocate shall submit to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives a report on the activities of the Investor Advocate during the immediately preceding fiscal year.“(ii) Contents.—Each report required under clause (i) shall include—“(I) appropriate statistical information and full and substantive analysis;“(II) information on steps that the Investor Advocate has taken during the reporting period to improve investor services and the responsiveness of the Commission and self-regulatory organizations to investor concerns;“(III) a summary of the most serious problems encountered by investors during the reporting period;“(IV) an inventory of the items described in subclause (III) that includes—“(aa) identification of any action taken by the Commission or the self-regulatory organization and the result of such action;“(bb) the length of time that each item has remained on such inventory; and“(cc) for items on which no action has been taken, the reasons for inaction, and an identification of any official who is responsible for such action;“(V) recommendations for such administrative and legislative actions as may be appropriate to resolve problems encountered by investors; and“(VI) any other information, as determined appropriate by the Investor Advocate.“(iii) Independence.—Each report required under this paragraph shall be provided directly to the Committees listed in clause (i) without any prior review or comment from the Commission, any commissioner, any other officer or employee of the Commission, or the Office of Management and Budget.“(iv) Confidentiality.—No report required under clause (i) may contain confidential information.“(7) Regulations.—The Commission shall, by regulation, establish procedures requiring a formal response to all recommendations submitted to the Commission by the Investor Advocate, not later than 3 months after the date of such submission.”.124 STAT. 1833