[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 957 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 957

To enhance investor confidence by providing investors with easy online 
    access to complete information about securities firms and their 
                                brokers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 27, 2003

   Mr. Renzi (for himself, Mr. Oxley, and Mr. Baker) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To enhance investor confidence by providing investors with easy online 
    access to complete information about securities firms and their 
                                brokers.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Broker Accountability through 
Enhanced Transparency Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. METHOD OF MAINTAINING REGISTRATION, DISCIPLINARY, AND OTHER 
              DATA.

    Subsection (i) of section 15A of the Securities Exchange Act of 
1934 (15 U.S.C. 78o-3(i)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(i) Obligation to Maintain Registration, Disciplinary and Other 
Data.--
            ``(1) Maintenance of system to respond to inquiries.--A 
        registered securities association shall--
                    ``(A) establish and maintain a system for 
                collecting and retaining registration information, 
                including disciplinary actions, on its members and 
                their associated persons;
                    ``(B) establish and maintain a toll-free telephone 
                listing, and a readily accessible electronic or other 
                process, to receive and promptly respond to inquiries 
                regarding--
                            ``(i) registration information, including 
                        disciplinary actions, on its members and their 
                        associated persons; and
                            ``(ii) registration information that has 
                        been reported to the association by any 
                        registered national securities exchange 
                        involving its members and their associated 
                        persons; and
                    ``(C) establish rules governing the process for 
                making inquiries and the type and scope of information 
                to be provided in response to such inquiries.
            ``(2) Recovery of costs.--Such association may charge 
        persons, other than individual investors, reasonable fees for 
        responses to such inquiries.
            ``(3) Process for disputed information.--Such an 
        association shall adopt rules addressing the process for 
        disputing the accuracy of information reported under this 
        subsection.
            ``(4) Limitation of liability.--Such an association, or 
        exchange reporting information to such an association, shall 
        not have any liability to any person for any actions taken or 
        omitted under this subsection.''.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR FILING DEPOSITORIES.

    Section 203A of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80b-
3a) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(f) Limitation of Liability.--An entity designated by the 
Commission under subsection (d)(1) shall not have any liability to any 
person for any action taken or omitted under this section.''.
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