A group of five House Democrats sent a letter to SEC acting Chair Mark Uyeda on March 18 questioning him about reports that the Trump administration is terminating leases for some of the agency’s regional offices.
The SEC informed staff in an email earlier this month that the General Services Administration, which is responsible for overseeing government workplace buildings, planned to terminate building leases for the agency’s Los Angeles and Philadelphia offices, according to reporting from Reuters.
The GSA also intends to terminate the Chicago office’s lease but may not be able to do so without notable financial penalties, according to the email, which also said these efforts are not related to any staff layoffs and restructuring at the SEC, Reuters reported.
“This news is both alarming and confusing given that it directly contradicts the Trump administration’s directive that all employees report to a physical office five days a week,” wrote House Financial Services Committee ranking member Maxine Waters, D-Calif., House Capital Markets Subcommittee ranking member Brad Sherman, D-Calif., and Reps. Bill Foster, D-Ill., Sean Casten, D-Ill., and Juan Vargas, D-Calif.
The lawmakers also referenced a February story from Reuters that reported the SEC plans to eliminate the roles of regional office directors as part of their cost-cutting plan.
“These actions contribute to further chaos and confusion within the agency and raise serious questions as to whether these lease terminations are simply an effort to permanently shutter these regional offices and fire the dedicated public servants stationed there, many of whom perform essential examinations and enforcement functions critical to protecting investors in these regions,” the lawmakers wrote in their letter.
An SEC spokesperson said the acting chair "will respond to members of Congress directly."
“Regional offices give the SEC eyes and boots on the ground in key financial centers across the country where financial services firms operate, particularly Los Angeles, Chicago, and Philadelphia,” the letter continued, adding that “regional presence ensures timely intervention.”
Such offices also “have staff members with specialized knowledge of local industries and practices of regulated intermediaries, enabling them to effectively target enforcement and examination efforts, focusing on high-risk practices to maximize efficiency,” the lawmakers contended.
“Were it not for these regional offices, the enforcement and examination costs to the Commission — and therefore taxpayers — is likely to significantly increase,” the lawmakers added.
Therefore, the group of Democrats requested that Uyeda provide any SEC documents regarding the termination of the leases, including any communication between the securities regulator and the GSA, as well as between the SEC and Elon Musk’s “department of government efficiency.”
The lawmakers also ask for more information on any impact the termination of such leases would have on employees, laying out 17 specific requests, including a “projection of the number of full- and part-time employees who may need to work remotely and any assurances that the SEC has received regarding permission for remote work for these employees.”
The letter requested a written response by March 28.
