From: Doris Lohrey-Birch
Sent: August 10, 2006
To: rule-comments@sec.gov
Subject: File No. S7-03-04

SEC Chairman Christopher Cox

Dear SEC Chairman Cox,

Mutual funds are an increasingly important savings vehicle for tens of millions of working Americans like me. We are the owners of these funds and we bear the risks if they are dominated by self-interested insiders. We look to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to protect us. I am writing to express my strong support for the proposed rule requiring that mutual fund boards have an independent chairperson and at least 75 percent independent directors. These rules were among the most important reforms adopted by the SEC in the wake of the mutual fund trading and sales abuse scandals.

A recent study by AFSCME and The Corporate Library found mutual funds provide a rubber stamp for excessive management pay, supporting more than three-quarters of all management pay proposals. Ninety percent of institutional investors think the current system overpays executives. We need independent directors to stand up to the excesses of the money managers.

The Investment Company Act requires that mutual funds be managed in the interests of their shareholders. Requiring independent directors and chairpersons will help ensure this safeguard for the small investor, to make sure the little person gets a fair shake.

The middle class working people that contribute towards their retirement are worried about the safety of the pension plans they've paid into for many years being there when they retire.
The culture of greed that has taken over by those in the upper echelons will cause damage to those future and current retirees.
People who have worked for 23-30+ years and paid into these mutual fund retirement plans should not have to worry about whether they can afford to keep the roof over their heads, food on the table or life saving medicines. The obscenly rich CEOs don't deserve to be rewarded for their reckless mismanagaement. They need to be jailed or even better make them live on the income of a middle-class retiree.

Sincerely,

Doris Lohrey-Birch