Advocacy Days included a follow up meeting with officials from the Department of Business Oversight, which regulates state-registered RIA firms and broker-dealers in California, in which we discussed appropriate oversight of investment advisors, audit frequency and our take on the best ways to protect the public. We met with the head of the Department of Insurance, Commissioner Jones, to further explore our common interest in weeding out bad actors in the insurance industry and make more clear the distinction between someone who does “financial planning” and a person who is only compensated to sell a financial product.
We’ve fielded questions and comments about the fiduciary standard and the Department of Labor’s recent regulatory changes. We are gauging and monitoring how officials in Sacramento interpret these rules and how they anticipate them playing out at the state level. We also presented our ongoing opposition to a sales tax on “services” provided by professionals such as financial planners (California’s Senate Bill No. 8).
While we’ve accomplished a lot in a very short time, there is still a long way to go. Every relationship between an FPA member and a key official or staff member in Sacramento will help us with our mission. As such, it is never too late for you to participate and start forging ties with your own local representatives.
Advocacy Days in Sacramento are done for 2017 but we will return to the capitol next March. Meanwhile, in September we’ll be visiting with local representatives in their home offices during our Advocacy Week. This is an easy, quick and low cost way for you to get a taste of advocacy on behalf of financial planners and the Financial Planning Association.
John D Buerger, CFP® MSFS
President, FPA of California
ALTUS Wealth Solutions
684 Higuera Street, Suite D
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
