At the end of March 2011, the Investment Company Institute held its annual Mutual Funds and Investment Management Conference in Palm Desert, California. Conspicuous in their absence were representatives from the Securities and Exchange Commission. For the first time in the ICI conference's history, the SEC did not send a single representative due to ongoing budget issues that have prevented the agency from authorizing almost any travel.
The SEC attempted to make the best of the situation by arranging for Washington-D.C.-based Eileen Rominger, director of its division of investment management, to address conference attendees over a video feed. The link didn't ...