Advocacy Priorities
Each year, we develop Advocacy Priorities to help focus our resources on issues that will directly impact our members, the Main Street Americans they serve and the financial services industry as a whole.
Defending Advisors’ Independent Contractor Classification
Independent financial advisors are entrepreneurs and small-business owners who have built their businesses within their local communities, providing access to professional financial advice to hard-working Americans. They choose the independent contractor model to better serve their clients.
In 2026, we will continue to defend advisors’ choice to be independent contractors and support solutions that preserve their independence.
Priorities include:
- Engaging with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and state policymakers on independent contractor rulemaking and guidance.
- Building support for the Modern Worker Empowerment Act, which would provide independent advisors clarity and certainty around worker classification.
- Opposing restrictive state laws that threaten independent business models.
Why it matters: Protecting advisors’ independent contractor status preserves the businesses they’ve built, supports the staff they have hired, and ensures Americans continue to have access to professional financial advice.
Investor Access & Choice
Americans have diverse financial goals and increasingly complex needs, making access to professional financial advice and services more important than ever. We advocate for policies that expand access to financial advice, products, and services while maintaining strong investor protections to help investors achieve their financial goals—whatever they may be.
Priorities include:
- Promoting regulatory consistency and alignment with the SEC’s Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) to avoid a patchwork of varying—and potentially conflicting—standards.
- Promote flexible compensation arrangements that support recruiting of the next generation of financial advisors.
- Supporting the expansion of the accredited investor definition.
- Expanding appropriate access to alternative investments and the private market.
- Advancing clear, workable regulatory frameworks for cryptocurrency.
Why it matters: These policies promote access and investor choice to a wide range of investment options to help them achieve financial security.
Investor Education & Protection
Financial education is essential to equip Americans with the knowledge that will help them achieve financial security. Additionally, with rapidly evolving technology and an aging population, advisors and firms must be empowered to help combat fraud and prevent financial exploitation.
Priorities include:
- Supporting policies that fight financial exploitation, such as “report and hold” rules and the Financial Exploitation Prevention Act.
- Promoting financial literacy for all ages across the country.
- Advancing efforts to prevent fraud related to AI, deepfakes, and digital content scams.
Why it matters: Financial advisors are often the first line of defense against financial exploitation, and the ability for firms and advisors to flag and hold transactions where there is reasonable suspicion of financial exploitation will ultimately help protect Americans’ nest eggs. View our resources on preventing elder financial abuse.
Similarly, strong financial literacy programs – particularly at the primary and high school levels – provide young Americans with solid, basic financial skills as they enter the workforce.
Modernization & Innovation
With rapid technological advancements and evolving client expectations, existing rules and guidance must support innovation and modern advisory business models and practices.
Priorities include:
- Supporting practical, innovation-friendly AI and technology regulation.
- Modernizing off-channel communication, e-delivery, and recordkeeping requirements.
- Harmonizing cybersecurity and privacy frameworks across federal and state jurisdictions.
- Promoting responsible AI use throughout the financial services industry.
Why it matters: As investors adopt a digital-first mindset and emerging technologies offer opportunities to increase efficiencies, modernizing the regulatory framework is essential to ensure a thriving independent financial services industry that meets clients’ needs while providing investor protection.
Ending Regulation by Enforcement
FSI opposes the use of enforcement activity to establish new regulatory requirements, also known as “regulation by enforcement.” Policymaking should follow the Notice-and-Comment rulemaking process to ensure transparency and accountability for all stakeholders.
Priorities include:
- Advocating for structural reform to ensure transparency and procedural fairness.
- Encouraging durable, principles-based rulemaking grounded in sound economic analysis.
- Advancing the recommendations outlined in our white paper, Recommendations to the SEC to Modify its Procedural Framework to Prevent Regulation by Enforcement.
Why it matters: Financial services firms, financial advisors and investors benefit from consistent, predictable rules.
Investment Adviser Advocacy
Investment adviser regulation must reflect modern advisory practice operations, including the realities facing small firms.
Priorities include:
- Advocating for modernization of RIA obligations, including e-delivery, AML, and cybersecurity.
- Promoting balanced AML/CFT compliance, minimizing small-firm burdens.
- Supporting harmonization between SEC and state frameworks.
Why it matters: Thoughtful alignment of evolving business models allows advisory businesses to operate efficiently and focus on serving clients while maintaining strong investor protections.
Advocacy Action Center
Our Advocacy Action Center is designed to help you get involved with simple but effective steps. There you can write a comment letter, contact your representatives in Congress, get updates on key bills, learn about FSI PAC, and more.