Congress has about a week left to negotiate a deal to keep the SEC and other agencies working after Sept. 30.
The last government shutdown from December 2018 to January 2019 hobbled the SEC. Only 122, or 3%, of the agency’s 4,418 employees at the time, worked full time during the shutdown, according to a Bloomberg Law analysis. Another 750, or 17%, assisted part time.
The SEC’s Enforcement Division had the most staff working. The agency’s Division of Corporation Finance, which drafts disclosure rules for companies, had only one full-time employee—its director.
Gensler said the SEC will get by the best it can with a skeletal staff if there’s another shutdown starting Oct. 1.
“I’ll be coming in,” Gensler said. “There’s a few of us that will come in.”
Source: Shutdown Threatens to Undercut SEC’s Momentum on ESG Oversight
