The crypto community, without a shadow of a doubt, knows Gary Gensler to be a regulatory pain in the sector. Against the financial regulation backdrop in the United States, one lawmaker’s audacious proposition to reduce Gary Gensler’s salary to a mere $1 serves as a symbolic statement.

The proposed bill underscores the tension between traditional financial structures and the disruptive force of cryptocurrencies. This move is emblematic of the deep-rooted disagreements and ideological clashes surrounding the future of financial regulation in the digital age.

Gary Gensler’s salary stands at risk

As it stands, it appears that crypto regulation under the SEC is taking a toll on the United States government budget. On that line, several lawmakers are coming for the man responsible, Gary Gensler. A U.S. legislator aims to reduce Gary Gensler’s salary, the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to only $1 year. 

Rep. Tim Burchett offered an amendment to the Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) that recommends Gary Gensler’s pay cut, which many see as a power play. How? In the long run, this is part of a broader proposal to withdraw funding from the regulator. 

The FSGG bill, which was initially presented on July 13 of the current year, is a comprehensive legislative proposal designed to reduce government expenditures in all areas substantially. 

Gary Gensler is believed to earn more than $300,000 annually for his role as the head of the SEC. The salary compensation of Securities and Exchange Commission officials in the United States is structured and regulated to ensure transparency and fairness. 

When it comes to the salary structure, the SEC has a structured compensation program for its employees. The salary cap for all SK staff, including locality pay, is $272,100. While specific details about pay ranges for SEC officials are not provided, this cap gives a glimpse into the upper limit of their salaries.

More officials go after the SEC and Gary Gensler

Rep. Tim Burchett is not the only government official pained by the SECs and Gary Gensler’s financial expenditure on crypto regulation.

During his presentation before the House Rules Committee on November 6th, Representative Steve Womack explained that the Securities and Exchange Commission, along with other government agencies, had been subjected to excessive regulation and were imposing an excessive financial burden on the government. 

Womack suggested that the most effective approach would be to withdraw funding from the SEC in order to reduce its regulatory “intrusiveness” and compel the agency to prioritize its primary objective. 

Per Womack’s suggestion, the measure would additionally retrieve funds allocated for the General Services Administration to construct environmentally friendly structures while also prohibiting the Consumer Product Safety Commission from imposing regulations on gas stoves.

We demand in this bill that agencies concentrate on their core mission […] The pursuit of a job-killing, burdensome, and unnecessary regulatory agenda only serves to further bloat a federal bureaucracy that has become too big, too intrusive, and counter-intuitive to limited government.

We move in that direction with this bill […] Specifically, we turn off rulemakings at the Securities and Exchange Commission that lack proper cost-benefit analysis and aggregate impact analysis.

Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.)

Womack added, “To be clear, the agencies under our jurisdiction perform important functions; however, many have strayed from their mandate, and the results have been a true disservice to the American people.”

Gary Gensler and his agency have faced criticism from U.S. politicians on many occasions prior to today’s event.

On June 12, the SEC Stabilization Act was introduced to the House of Representatives by United States Reps. Warren Davidson and Tom Emmer. One of the main elements of the bill is to oust Gary Gensler from his position as chair of the SEC. 

If approved, the bill would terminate Gart Gensler from his position and reallocate the authority of the agency among the SEC chair and commissioners.  Additionally, it would establish the role of an executive director and introduce a sixth commissioner to the agency in order to prevent any single political party from exerting a dominant influence. 

Davidson and Emmer have consistently expressed their disapproval of the Gary Gensler-led SEC, with Emmer characterizing the SEC Chair as a regulator acting in bad faith and accusing him of indiscriminately targeting the crypto community with enforcement measures while neglecting the genuinely malicious individuals.