GAO Report Finds 18% Decrease in SEC Enforcement Division Staff in FY 2025

SEC Staffing Levels Dip 18% Under Trump

Staffing levels at the SEC have declined nearly 20% since 2025, new government data shows.

That drop is due to attrition and the White House’s job-cutting efforts, according to a report on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released Friday (March 27) by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The report shows that the divisions seeing the largest losses were the ones charged with regulating investment and credit ratings. The 18% reduction in force, as of the end of September, was much sharper than what was seen across the government as a whole, which dipped by 12%.

“The workforce changes SEC made in 2025 were significant and could pose risks to the agency’s ability to fulfill its mission,” the report reads.

“SEC officials told us that their efforts to address the effects of these changes are ongoing. For example, in December 2025, SEC officials said SEC’s newly established strategic hiring committee had begun gathering additional information on unmet critical hiring needs across divisions and offices.”

SEC Shakeup Renews Dispute Over Wall Street, Crypto Enforcement

The abrupt departure of the SEC’s enforcement chief is stirring speculation about who will serve as its next top cop, adding to scrutiny over plunging enforcement numbers and cases dropped against crypto defendants tied to President Donald Trump. […]

Atkins and acting enforcement chief Sam Waldon have also brushed aside reports from Cornerstone Research and others indicating new SEC actions against public companies and financial recoveries from fraudsters under Trump-appointed leadership are at their lowest levels in at least a decade.

“I’ve never thought that those are particularly good ways of evaluating the effectiveness of an enforcement program,” Waldon said at SEC Speaks. “I know that Chairman Atkins does not.”

But the narrower enforcement focus—along with an SEC policy requiring commissioners to sign off on any subpoena orders—could limit the talent pool for a new enforcement director.

Disgraced Theranos fraudster Elizabeth Holmes just caught a break in court — and prosecutors aren’t happy

Disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes will serve just over 10 years behind bars after a federal judge trimmed her prison sentence by a year — while stressing her massive fraud still warrants serious punishment.

US District Judge Edward Davila on Thursday took 12 months off her original sentence of 11 years and three months due to changes to federal guidelines for first-time, non-violent offenders.

Earlier this year, Holmes appealed to President Trump for an early release from prison — a full six years before she is eligible for parole.

Power Supply Company Hit with AI-Related Securities Suit

The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based tools and applications has also meant the rise in AI-related infrastructure, such as data centers and power generation support. And just as we have seen the rise of securities litigation relating to companies’ adoption of AI tools and processes, we have also seen securities suits relating to AI infrastructure development.

In the latest example of this kind of AI infrastructure-related litigation, on March 20, 2026, a plaintiff shareholder filed a securities class action lawsuit against the engine and power systems company Power Solutions International, alleging that the company’s new strategy of providing power generation solutions for AI data centers had fallen short of the company’s representations. A copy of the new complaint against Power Solutions can be found here.

Washington sues Kalshi as states ramp up legal pressure against prediction markets

The state of Washington has become the latest to sue a prediction markets provider, after alleging Friday that Kalshi had violated state gambling laws through its products.

According to the complaint, Washington has a tightly-regulated gambling market, including a ban on online gambling, but Kalshi’s products bypass these regulations.

“Kalshi’s website and app show consumers a range of events that they can bet on and the odds for those various events, which dictate how much the bettor will be paid out if the event occurs,” a press release from the state said. “This is exactly how sportsbooks and other gambling operations function. Kalshi advertises that they allow consumers to ‘bet on anything’ by simply calling their service a ‘prediction market’ rather than ‘gambling.'”