Congressman John Dingell (D-MI), the House Commerce Committee's ranking Democrat, stated that "This is an important piece of legislation. The bill is important because it modernizes and updates laws that play a critical role in our capital formation process. But it's also important because it repudiates the idea that our securities markets need to be radically deregulated -- an idea that took hold among too many of my colleagues earlier in this Congress. Rather than wiping out investor protections that have stood the test of time, this bill preserves and enhances the principle of investor protection that serves as the core purpose of all federal securities laws."

Congressman Edward J. Markey (D-MA) is the ranking Democrat on the Telecommunications & Finance Subcommittee. He was one of the two key architects of the investor protection and modernization provisions in the bill. In March of this year, he met with Subcommittee Chairman Jack Fields, and together they agreed on the basic elements embodied in today's legislation. Congressman Markey stated: "This bill represents a triumph of reason and moderation over extremism and ideology. It is a triumph that should be the rule but sadly has been the exception in the 104th Congress.

"Fifteen months ago the Republicans were talking about repealing the law that sent Michael Milken and Ivan Boesky to jail; repealing the law that protects pension funds and college endowments from unscrupulous stockbrokers; repealing the law that gives companies a fighting chance when faced with a hostile takeover; repealing the law on margin that prevents speculative excess on Wall Street; and pre-empting laws in the States that require more than 150,000 investment advisers to take competency exams and get licences.

"Today the Congress is sending to the President a law that establishes a revolutionary new 800 number -- accessible by phone or the internet -- for investors to use to check on the disciplinary background of their investment adviser; a law that prevents all convicted felons from serving as advisers; a law that authorizes the SEC to budget $20 million more to the oversight of investment advisers; and a law that prohibits the use of misleading mutual fund names that might cause investors to believe their fund investment is insured.

"The mutual fund provisions of the bill deserve special recognition. It has been evident for some time that mutual funds are one of the great financial success stories of the second half of the 20th century. The trinity of professional management, diverse portfolios, and effective federal regulation have democratized our financial markets and energized the capital formation process in ways that could not have been imagined 56 years ago when the original mutual fund act was written. President Clinton's signature on this historic legislation will help assure that the mutual fund success story continues well into the 21st century."

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