The Government Accountability Office ("GAO") released a report about the internal controls which the SEC has in place to help ensure that staff carry out their work completely and in a manner consistent with applicable policies and procedures. The GAO recommends that, to help ensure that controls are properly designed and operating effectively, the SEC should make certain that existing internal supervisory controls and any developed in the future have clearly defined activities, as well as clear and readily available documentation demonstrating the execution of the activities. View report in

Members of the Financial Services Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee stated during a hearing that, by ignoring the deadline to implement a key provision of a bipartisan law approved a year ago, the SEC is costing America desperately needed jobs in a struggling economy. The SEC failed to meet the JOBS Act's deadlines to write required rules for other provisions that will help small businesses raise capital and hire workers. See: Press Release.For a compilation of related news items, see Current Topics - JOBS Act.See clip from YouTube.

FINRA released its podcast for April 17, 2013, focusing on market regulation priorities. See the outline below. Algorithmic and High-Frequency Trading Examiners are focused on how firms are supervising the development of algorithms and trading systems. FINRA will continue to assess whether firms have adequate testing and controls for their systems consistent with the market access rule and other supervisory obligations. FINRA will also focus on whether firms have a firm-wide disconnect, or "kill switches," as well as procedures for responding to widespread systems malfunctions. FINRA is

FINRA is reminding firms of the coming reduction in reporting periods for the timely reporting of transactions in agency pass-through mortgage-backed securities traded TBA for good delivery (MBS TBA transactions GD) and products not traded for good delivery (MBS TBA transactions NGD). Current Reporting Requirement until May 17, 2013, 11:59:59 p.m. ET (from time of execution) Reporting Requirement upon Expiration of the Pilot Program (from time of execution) MBS TBA transactions GD 45 minutes 15 minutes MBS TBA transactions NGD 120 minutes 60 minutes View Notice in full here (links externally

FINRA and the other U.S. members of the Intermarket Surveillance Group have extended the effective date for compliance with certain new data elements for Electronic Blue Sheets ("EBS"), identified in Regulatory Notice 12-47 to November 1, 2013, to correspond to the recent extension by the SEC for compliance with certain broker-dealer recordkeeping and reporting requirements of SEA Rule 13h-1. Attachment A to this Notice sets forth the EBS record layout and, except for minor modifications noted below, remains unchanged from the version published in Regulatory Notice 12-47. Attachment B to this