Congressmen Say Pitt Hurt SEC’s Credibility

SECURITIES

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Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Harvey Pitt damaged the agency’s credibility by meeting with Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s chairmen as the investment bank faces three SEC probes, two Democratic representatives said.

John Dingell of Michigan, the ranking minority member of the House Commerce Committee, and committee member Edward Markey of Massachusetts said in a letter to Pitt that he “apparently departed” from a promise he made in May not to meet with executives from companies under SEC investigation.

“Such meetings damage the morale of commission staff at a time when the commission is faced with a dramatically increased workload that is stretching its resources to the limit,” Dingell and Markey wrote.

Pitt said he is continuing to follow his pledge “to avoid even the appearance of impropriety in instances where such meetings could be misconstrued.”