28 Aug SEC Filing Fees Going Down. Again!

Sometimes good things happen to good people. In this case folks filing public offerings and other registrations with the SEC will see a reduction in filing fees. The agency made the announcement yesterday. As of October 2015, the start of the SEC’s fiscal year, the filing fees will go down 13% to $100.70 per million being raised. Last year they also went down another 10%.

Why would they do this when they are always complaining about needing more funds? Because they are required by law to set a price based on a target revenue amount that’s set with Congress and the US Office of Management and Budget. So they are basically required to reduce the fee to not plan to go above next year’s target of $550 million in fees collected.

Why does this matter that much? A $50 million public offering will requires a $5,035 fee now, clearly not a burden relatively speaking. But it adds up and helps fund the SEC’s important work. Other government fee-related things make less sense to me. A visit to the Smithsonian in DC, for example, is free. Why not at least allow a voluntary contribution or charge like $3? Just saying.