A new SEC rule would limit consumer choice by taking away your right to automatically receive sensitive financial statements by mail. This same rule also forces investors to manually opt-out of e-delivery, creating unnecessary hurdles for investors and placing them at greater risk of online scams.
The comment period closes September 21. Act now!
I am writing to oppose the proposed rule on Regulation E-Delivery (S7-2026-25). The proposal would reverse the longstanding default under which investors receive financial disclosures by paper unless they actively choose otherwise. I urge the Commission to withdraw it before finalization.
The proposed rule relies on an opt-out hurdle that won't protect the people who need it most. Seniors, rural residents, low-income households, and people with limited digital access are the populations most likely to need paper and least likely to successfully navigate an opt-out process.
Additionally, the rule teaches investors to do exactly what every credible fraud warning tells them not to. Under the proposal, investors wouldn't receive documents directly. They'd get email notifications directing them to a portal to retrieve sensitive financial information. That's structurally identical to how phishing attacks work, and there's no reliable way for an ordinary investor to tell the difference.
The SEC has a statutory mandate to protect investors. This proposal, as designed, would expose the most vulnerable investors to higher fraud risk, transfer the burden of maintaining access from regulated entities to individuals least able to carry it, and deliver the primary financial benefits to the industry rather than to the people the rule purports to serve.
I urge the Commission to maintain paper as the default, require a disparate-impact assessment before any final rule, and examine the documented relationship between default electronic delivery and elder fraud exposure before proceeding.
