Letter from the Board Chair and the CEO (October 2025)
Dear Stakeholders,
As MSRB begins a new fiscal year, we wish to recognize 50 years of serving our congressional mandate to protect investors, issuers and the public interest while safeguarding the integrity of the $4 trillion municipal securities market.
To advance our mission, MSRB’s Board approved a budget of $46.2 million for FY 2026. This represents a decrease of 5.2% or $2.6 million compared to our FY 2025 budget. MSRB’s FY 2026 budget reflects an organizational restructuring and rightsizing of its workforce that took place in FY 2025. We believe that this budget provides the necessary resources for MSRB to focus on its core mission and statutory duties. This includes ongoing work to modernize our rulebook through retrospective rule reviews, completing the modernization of the Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA®) website, and ensuring the availability, reliability and cybersecurity of our technology systems and data repository.
In addition, MSRB announced it plans to return to the industry more than $23 million in surplus operating reserves accumulated over the last two years due to unprecedented market activity levels. MSRB has filed an amended rate card with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that includes a temporary credit for certain market activity fees over the next two years. This is projected to return MSRB’s reserves to target levels. The new rate card will also provide the regulated entities that pay MSRB’s fees with greater certainty and stability going forward.
Fiscal stewardship, budget transparency and public accountability remain of paramount importance to MSRB. It’s in this spirit that we have maintained an open dialogue with our stakeholders, seeking their feedback and perspectives to inform our initiatives, including the development of our FY 2026 budget and next Strategic Plan. We continue to listen carefully to stakeholder concerns and are taking them into consideration as we position MSRB for the future.
For five decades, MSRB’s rules have protected investors and issuers alike by ensuring a fair and orderly market that promotes efficiency, competition and capital formation, while our technology systems and data repository have leveled the playing field by mitigating information asymmetry and promoting market transparency. We are committed to ensuring MSRB’s legacy continues to withstand the test of time as we look forward to the next 50 years of serving our congressional mandate and giving America the confidence to invest in our communities.
Sincerely,
Natasha A. Holiday, Board Chair
Mark Kim, CEO
