WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The head of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said on Thursday he had yet to review a call from the White House for mass layoffs at federal agencies during a possible government shutdown but believed the agency was working to meet President Donald Trump’s priorities.
The remarks came a day after the White House’s Office of Management and Budget released a memo instructing agencies to plan for the permanent elimination of large parts of the federal work force – in particular, those working in unfunded programs deemed not to fit presidential priorities – if Congress allows funding to lapse next week.
“Well, I haven’t actually seen what came out but you know, I think we’ll take a look at it, obviously,” SEC Chairman Paul Atkins told reporters, adding that the multiple functions currently performed by the agency were “in keeping with the president’s priorities.”
“Our first job is to make sure that we can fulfill all of the demands that everyone’s placing on us, frankly.”
Since Trump took office, the SEC has seen sharp but entirely voluntary reductions in staffing, arguing that these should help meet White House calls to shrink the federal work force that elsewhere have seen employees dismissed en masse.
Under Atkins, the SEC has also launched a broad-based mission to support the development of the cryptocurrency sector, which Trump has embraced, reined in enforcement of market players and delayed the effective dates for several regulations adopted by the prior administration.
(Reporting by Douglas Gillison in Washington; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
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