502.601 Administration.

1. Administration. This chapter shall be administered by the commissioner of insurance of this state. The administrator shall appoint a deputy administrator who shall be exempt from the merit system provisions of chapter 8A, subchapter IV. The deputy administrator is the principal operations officer of the securities and regulated industries bureau of the insurance division of the department of commerce. The deputy administrator is responsible to the administrator for the routine administration of this chapter and the management of the securities and regulated industries bureau. In the absence of the administrator, whether because of vacancy in the office, by reason of absence, physical disability, or other cause, the deputy administrator shall be the acting administrator and shall, for that period, have and exercise the authority conferred upon the administrator. The administrator may by order delegate to the deputy administrator any or all of the functions assigned to the administrator under this chapter. The administrator shall employ officers, attorneys, accountants, and other employees as needed for the administration of this chapter.

2. Unlawful use of records or information. It is unlawful for the administrator or an officer, employee, or designee of the administrator to use for personal benefit or the benefit of others records or other information obtained by or filed with the administrator that are not public under section 502.607, subsection 2. This chapter does not authorize the administrator or an officer, employee, or designee of the administrator to disclose the record or information, except in accordance with section 502.602, section 502.607, subsection 3, or section 502.608.

3. No privilege or exemption created or diminished. This chapter does not create or diminish a privilege or exemption that exists at common law, by statute or rule, or otherwise.

4. Investor education and financial literacy. The administrator may develop and implement investor education and financial literacy initiatives to inform the public about investing in securities, with particular emphasis on the prevention and detection of securities fraud. In developing and implementing these initiatives, the administrator may collaborate with public and nonprofit organizations with an interest in investor education and financial literacy. The administrator may accept a grant or donation from a person who is not affiliated with the securities industry or from a nonprofit organization, regardless of whether the organization is affiliated with the securities industry, to develop and implement investor education and financial literacy initiatives. This subsection does not authorize the administrator to require participation or monetary contributions of a registrant in an investor education or financial literacy program.

5. The securities investor education and financial literacy training fund. A securities investor education and financial literacy training fund is created in the state treasury under the control of the administrator to provide moneys for the purposes specified in subsection 4. All moneys received by the state by reason of civil penalties pursuant to this chapter and the moneys appropriated to the fund pursuant to section 502.410, subsection 2, shall be deposited in the securities investor education and financial literacy training fund. Notwithstanding section 12C.7, interest or earnings on moneys deposited into the fund shall be credited to the fund. Notwithstanding section 8.33, unencumbered or unobligated moneys remaining in the fund shall not revert but shall be available for expenditure for the following fiscal year. However, if, on June 30, unencumbered or unobligated moneys remaining in the fund exceed five hundred thousand dollars, moneys in excess of that amount shall revert to the general fund of the state in the same manner as provided in section 8.33.

[SS15, §1920-u, -u10; C24, 27, §8525, 8550; C31, 35, §8581-c2; C39, §8581.02; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, §502.2; C77, 79, 81, §502.601]

83 Acts, ch 169, §15; 91 Acts, ch 258, §55; 2003 Acts, ch 145, §268; 2004 Acts, ch 1161, §50, 68; 2005 Acts, ch 3, §78; 2006 Acts, ch 1117, §12; 2008 Acts, ch 1123, §5, 6

Referred to in §502.102, 502.410, 516E.1, 516E.19, 523D.1