GAO Releases Report on Mutual Fund Examinations

The GAO released a report, SEC: Steps Being Taken to Make Examination Process More Risk-Based and Transparent.  After the mutual funds market-timing scandals, the SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) took steps to revise its examination process to better identify and focus its resources on those activities representing the greatest risk to investors.  This report describes the OCIE's revised procedures and reforms and provides recommendations.  GAO continues to believe that implementing its prior recommendations to obtain and use compliance reports from firms could help OCIE better identify higher-risk firms.  It also recommends that the SEC consider relocating its registrant complaint hotline to an independent office.