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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary


For Immediate Release March 6, 1998
                PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES ARTHUR LEVITT, JR. 
                    AS CHAIR AND COMMISSIONER OF THE 
                   SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

The President today announced his intent to nominate Arthur Levitt, Jr. as Chair and Commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Mr. Arthur Levitt, Jr., of Brooklyn, New York, is the current Chair of the SEC, where he has served since July 1993. As Chair he has overseen the securities market as they have reached new and unprecedented highs. He is a distinguished and respected figure in the area of finance and public service. He served as Chairman of the American Stock Exchange for eleven years, leaving in 1989, to devote his time to a publishing venture, including ownership of the newspaper Roll Call. Prior to working at the American Stock Exchange, he was president and director of Shearson Hayden Stone Inc. and another small brokerage firm, both predecessors to Shearson Lehman Brothers. Mr. Levitt received a B.A. Phi Beta Kappa from Williams College.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is an independent, bipartisan commission, charged with regulation and enforcement of laws pertaining to: public offerings of securities; securities markets and persons conducting securities businesses; mutual funds and other investment companies; companies controlling electric or gas utilities; and investment counselors and advisors. The SEC also acts as an advisor to United States district courts in bankruptcy proceedings for debtor corporations in which there is substantial public interest. The SEC is comprised of five members, appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Chair is designated by the President from among the members, for a period of 5 years.

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