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Contact:          Jennifer A. Galloway, Chief Communications Officer
                      (703) 797-6600
                      jgalloway@msrb.org    

MUNICIPAL SECURITIES RULEMAKING BOARD FILES WITH SEC
TO REQUIRE DEALERS TO DISCLOSE BOND BALLOT CONTRIBUTIONS 

Alexandria, VA - The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) today filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) an amendment to its political contributions rule to require municipal securities broker-dealers and banks, their municipal professionals and political action committees to publicly disclose contributions made in support of bond ballot initiatives.  The change will provide for free public access to centralized disclosure of such contributions through the MSRB’s website at www.msrb.org.   

“Public disclosure of bond ballot contributions by municipal securities firms is the best way to understand their possible effects on the integrity of the municipal securities market,” said MSRB Executive Director Lynnette Kelly Hotchkiss. “Including disclosure of bond ballot contributions in the MSRB’s existing pay-to-play disclosure system will expand the breadth of dealers’ political contribution activities subject to the sunshine of our rule.” The change will become effective after approval by the SEC. 

Bond ballot measure campaigns typically occur as a result of a state or local government placing a ballot measure before voters to approve specified municipal borrowing. Many state and local jurisdictions are required to authorize the issuance of municipal bonds through voter approval to fund municipal finance projects.

The MSRB’s existing pay-to-play rule, known as Rule G-37, has been the primary means of seeking the elimination of the use of political contributions by dealers to influence the awarding of business in the new-issue municipal securities market.  The rule has served as a model for other federal and state regulators, public bodies and government officials seeking to eliminate the influence of political contributions on the awarding of public-sector contracts.

For additional information on today’s filing, please see MSRB Notice 2009-62.  

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) protects and strengthens the municipal bond market, enabling access to capital, economic growth, and societal progress in tens of thousands of communities across the country. MSRB fulfills this mission by creating trust in our market through informed regulation of dealers and municipal advisors that protects investors, issuers and the public interest; building technology systems that power our market and provide transparency for issuers, institutions, and the investing public; and serving as the steward of market data that empowers better decisions and fuels innovation for the future. MSRB is a self-regulatory organization governed by a board of directors that has a majority of public members, in addition to representatives of regulated entities. MSRB is overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission and Congress.

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