Now Is the Time to Put America on a Path of Fiscal Responsibility

On behalf of funds and the 90 million investors that they serve, fund industry leaders are sending a simple but urgent message to Congress and the White House: the time has arrived to put America’s fiscal house in order.

Thirty executives of companies represented on ICI’s Board of Governors, the chair of the Independent Directors Council, and I are joining together to send a letter to the co-chairs of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction—known as the “Super Committee”—every other member of Congress, and the President. The letter will also appear as advertisements in the New York Times and Roll Call.

The full text of our letter follows.

Only days remain for the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to report on its efforts. Meanwhile, more than 90 million American mutual fund investors wait anxiously for Congress and the Administration to act.

These are Americans who are investing for a brighter future—a secure retirement, a better education, or a solid financial foundation. They need responsible action by their government to protect the health of the economy and the financial markets on which they depend.

The time to act is now. Last summer, we saw how harmful it is when America’s resolve to address our fiscal crisis is put in doubt. Congress and the Administration must work together to put America on a path of fiscal responsibility. The health of our markets, the prosperity of our nation, and the security of future generations all depend upon it.

American Century Investments
Jonathan S. Thomas
President and CEO Aquila Investment Management LLC
Diana P. Herrmann
President and CEO BlackRock, Inc.
Laurence D. Fink
Chairman and CEO Capital Research and Management Company
Paul G. Haaga Jr.
Chairman of the Board Columbia Management
William F. Truscott
CEO, U.S. Asset Management and President, Annuities Delaware Investments
Patrick P. Coyne
President and CEO Dodge & Cox
Thomas M. Mistele
Chief Operating Officer The Dreyfus Corporation
Jonathan R. Baum
Chairman and CEO Eaton Vance Corporation
Thomas E. Faust Jr.
Chairman and CEO Federated Investors, Inc.
John W. McGonigle
Vice Chairman Franklin Resources, Inc.
Gregory E. Johnson
President and CEO Goldman Sachs Mutual Funds
James A McNamara
President and CEO Invesco, Ltd.
Martin L. Flanagan
President and CEO JPMorgan Asset Management
George C. W. Gatch
CEO, JP Morgan Funds Legg Mason, Inc.
Mark R. Fetting
Chairman and CEO Lord, Abbett & Co. LLC
Robert S. Dow
Senior Partner Natixis Global Asset Management, L.P.
John T. Hailer
President and CEO, U.S. and Asia New York Life Investments
John Y. Kim
Chairman and CEO Northern Funds and Northern Institutional Funds
Lloyd A. Wennlund
President Nuveen Investments
Thomas S. Schreier Jr.
Vice Chairman, Wealth Management OppenheimerFunds, Inc.
William F. Glavin Jr.
Chairman, President, and CEO PIMCO
William H. Gross
Founder and Co-CIO Pioneer Investments
Daniel K. Kingsbury
President and CEO Prudential Investments
Judy Rice
President Putnam Investments
Robert L. Reynolds
President and CEO State Street Global Advisors
James E. Ross
Senior Managing Director and Global Head of ETFs T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.
Edward C. Bernard
Vice Chairman Thornburg Investment Management, Inc.
Garrett Thornburg
Chairman Vanguard
F. William McNabb III
Chairman and CEO Waddell & Reed, Inc.
Michael D. Strohm
CEO Independent Directors Council
Dorothy A. Berry
Chair Investment Company Institute
Paul Schott Stevens
President and CEO