Minutes - September 19, 2016

A meeting of the State Securities Board was held on September 19, 2016, in Room 320, Thomas Jefferson Rusk State Office Building, at 9:15 a.m. Those present were: Beth Ann Blackwood, Chair; E. Wally Kinney, Member; David A. Appleby, Member; Miguel Romano, Jr., Member; John Morgan, Securities Commissioner; Travis Iles, Deputy Securities Commissioner; Tommy Green, Director, Inspections and Compliance Division; Derek Lauterjung, Director, Staff Services Division; Clinton Edgar, Director, Registration Division; Joseph J. Rotunda, Director, Enforcement Division; Marlene K. Sparkman, General Counsel; Robert Elder, Communications; Callie Hester, Attorney, Inspections and Compliance Division; and Sonia Fergerson, Executive Assistant. Also attending were Jared Staples, Monday Rufus, Brent Wistrom, and Debbie D. Cunningham.

Chair Blackwood called the meeting to order at 9:15 a.m.

Minutes of the May 24, 2016, meeting were approved.

The Board voted to adopt the following proposed rules:

1. Amending §115.19(c) and (e), concerning Texas Crowdfunding Portal Registration and Activities, to allow a registered Texas Crowdfunding Portal to establish a segregated account in lieu of an escrow account when the maximum offering amount is $100,000 or less.

2. Amending §139.25(f) and (j), concerning Intrastate Crowdfunding Exemption, to allow a segregated account to be used in lieu of an escrow account when the maximum offering amount is $100,000 or less.

The Board voted to publish for public comment the following new rule proposal:

1. Amendment to §109.7(e), concerning secondary trading exemption under the Texas Securities Act, Section 5.O, to define "recognized securities manual."

The Board received information on a prospective grant for $28,375 to update the Texas Investor Guide: Strategies for Investing Wisely and Avoiding Financial Fraud publication that is pending before the Investor Protection Trust.

The Audit Committee reported on the Agency’s Internal Audit Report for Fiscal Year 2016 and the Board reviewed and approved the report.

The Commissioner gave an update on the Form D filings made through the Electronic Filing Depository ("EFD") System and the plan to phase out paper filings of Form D by the end of the calendar year.

The Commissioner gave an update on the Agency’s legislative appropriations request and discussed the upcoming legislative session.

The Commissioner gave a report on the Agency’s budget and performance measures.

The Commissioner gave a general update on Agency operations.

The meeting was then adjourned.