Retail Investor Protection Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Retail Investor
Protection Act, legislation that will ensure investor access to
personalized and cost-effective investment advice.

The Department of Labor's proposed fiduciary rule will make it more
difficult for hard-working Americans to access financial advice and to
save for retirement.

Time and again, I have heard from constituents throughout my central
Kentucky district of how this massive, 1,000-page rule will negatively
affect them: Private employers and not-for-profit organizations will no
longer be able to bring in financial advisers to provide educational
information about retirement plans to their employees. Investors with
small accounts will no longer be able to receive advice for their
401(k) plans. Middle class investors will lose access to professional
advice, and financial products like annuities will no longer be
available. More and more Americans will be forced to seek information
on the Internet or from robo-advisers.

Let's get this straight, Mr. Speaker. This rule will replace flesh
and blood professional advisers with a computer. As one of my
constituents said to me, if you think professional advice is expensive,
wait until you see the cost of amateur advice. In short, the Department
of Labor's rule will hurt the very people it is supposed to protect.

On July 29, Representatives Wagner, Scott, Clay, and I sent a
bipartisan letter, signed by 21 Members, to Secretary Perez, asking for
the DOL to stop these disruptive changes and repropose the rule in
light of the many negative comments. Secretary Perez replied that the
DOL would not entertain the request. That is why it is necessary for
Congress to take action and pass this legislation.

Look, we all agree that financial advisers should act in the best
interests of their clients, but heightened consumer protections in the
investment space should apply broadly and should not create two classes
of investors. It should not bifurcate the industry to those who can
afford advisers and those who cannot. The result will be less choice
for consumers and a lack of access for retail investors to sound
financial advice. The best consumer protection is not central planning
from Washington. It is choice and competition.

I thank Representative Wagner for her leadership on this issue, and I
encourage my colleagues to vote for competition and choice, to vote for
access to professional financial advice, and to defeat this rule.

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