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Contact: Jennifer A. Galloway
             (703) 797-6675
             jgalloway@msrb.org

MSRB EXPANDS ENFORCEMENT SUPPORT WITH AGREEMENT TO ASSIST THE IRS

Alexandria, VA – The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) announced today that it has expanded the support it provides to federal regulatory organizations with an agreement to provide municipal market data to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in connection with its enforcement of tax laws related to municipal securities.

The MSRB regulates the $3.7 trillion municipal market and currently provides information and data to regulatory authorities that enforce MSRB rules governing municipal market financial professionals. The new agreement extends the MSRB’s enforcement support to the IRS for its enforcement of federal internal revenue laws related to the municipal securities market. The MSRB will provide the IRS with municipal market data and documents collected through MSRB information systems.

“Industry compliance with federal tax laws is fundamental to a fair and efficient municipal market,” said MSRB Executive Director Lynnette Kelly Hotchkiss. “Investments in technology have enabled the MSRB to make municipal market data more readily available to regulators and our agreement with the IRS will ensure that MSRB data and other support are readily available to the IRS for its enforcement activities.”

“We appreciate the assistance from the MSRB. This agreement helps the IRS foster the best market conditions for both municipal bond issuers and investors,” said Joseph H. Grant, Acting Commissioner of the IRS Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division.

Under federal securities law, the MSRB has a statutory mandate to provide enforcement support to regulatory authorities. The MSRB assists authorities that enforce MSRB rules, including the Securities Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and appropriate bank regulators, with real-time access to market transactions, training on MSRB rules and data analysis. The MSRB also meets regularly with enforcement authorities to discuss municipal market issues and coordinates on education and outreach activities related to compliance with MSRB rules.

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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