SEC IG Asked to Investigate Timing of Goldman Suit

A group of House Republicans is asking the Securities and Exchange Commission's inspector general to investigate whether agency officials engaged in unauthorized disclosure of charges against Goldman Sachs.

A letter Friday from the eight lawmakers suggests SEC employees might have leaked information to influence debate in Congress on financial regulation. The lawmakers question the timing of disclosures about the agency's actions and cite a news article that described the Goldman suit before the agency's official announcement. Republican Rep. Darrell Issa of California says any violation of the SEC's disclosure rules "would be deeply troubling."

The head of the SEC has denied that the case was timed to effect debate on the legislation.