At the request of Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), ranking Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, SEC Inspector General (IG) David Kotz announced today he will open an investigation into the timing of the SEC suit filed against Goldman Sachs.
“I have received the letter and do intend to conduct an investigation at the request of Congressman Issa,” Kotz said today in an appearance on Fox News’ Your World with Neil Cavuto. “We need to understand what led to the decision to announce or bring the case on that day. See if there was any undue influence involved and so we’ll look very carefully to investigate that and see what we determine.”
Issa said in his letter to the SEC IG requesting the probe that he had concerns over the timing and improper influence in the current debate over finance reform legislation.
“The circumstances of the filing and subsequent events fueled suspicion that the Commission, or one or more of its officials or employees, may have engaged in unauthorized disclosure or discussion of Commission proceedings in order to affect the debate over financial regulatory legislation currently pending before the United States Senate,” Issa said. “Disclosure rules and procedures at the SEC are important to efforts to prevent insider trading and any violation would be deeply troubling.”
