Today President Trump issued an important memorandum directing the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to delay its so-called “Fiduciary Rule,” an Obama administration regulation set to go into effect in April. In addition, the memorandum gives DOL “discretion over whether to revise or rescind the rule,” according to the Wall Street Journal.
This is welcome news for American consumers. National Taxpayers Union (NTU) has continually sounded the alarm bell about this unworkable and costly rule. DOL’s conservative estimates indicate the Fiduciary Rule would cost $32 billion over ten years. By increasing the regulatory and compliance burdens on financial advisers, the rule would price low and moderate income people out of the investment and retirement savings market. Likewise, the rule would likely limit access to sound financial advice for those still in the market.
NTU has made the case that many Obama administration laws and regulations dramatically harmed the financial services industry and American consumers. We will continue to work with Congress and the Trump administration to curb onerous regulations that hamper economic growth.