Crist signs bill to battle securities fraud - Washington Business Journal:

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During a ceremonial bill signing Monday atthe Miami-Dade County Courthouse, Crist, with Attorney General Bill McCollum and some of the bill’ds sponsors at his side, signed the Investor Protectiob Act (HB 483). It givea McCollum’s office, with approval from the , the authorityy to investigate andprosecute large-scale securitiee scams under the state’s securities law. white-collar criminal prosecutions fell under the racketeering which is harder to Prosecutions also were limited to the office ofthe state’sx attorney, McCollum pointed out.
Crist noted that this kind of authorit y was lacking during his tenurew as attorney general and that this law woulsput “teeth” into the state’s prosecutorial The law enhances the Officr of Financial Regulation’s enforcement powersz by increasing penalties for violators and strengthening the license registration requirements for securities dealers. Penalties doublse from $5,000 to $10,000 as a resul of the law, which goes into effectg Wednesday. State authorities will also be able to pursue civilk lawsuits to recoverlost money, McCollum McCollum worked with Rep. Tom Grady, R-Naplesz and Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples on the legislation. Both attendeds the signing.
Sen. Dan Gelber, D-Miami a bill sponsor, also attended Monday’s Grady is a securities attorney and expert in securitiees regulation who drafted the bill and sponsored it inthe House. “Noe the attorney general will have the tools to do the said Grady, prior to the signing. “Our economyt will grow stronger if investors have confidence in ourfinanciaol markets,” he said in a statement. “By increasingv the tools available to the state to prosecute violatorz of oursecurities laws, we protect investors and foster needed trust in the system.