Statement: Center Praise Oversight Committee for Initiating 38 Studios SEC Fraud Investigation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 7, 2016

SEC Fraud Charges a Result of House Oversight Probe into 38 Studios
RI Government Once Again Betrays Trust of the People

Providence, RI — On the heals of today’s announcement by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it charged an agency of the RI state government and a private sector financial institution with defrauding investors in the 38 Studios scandal, the RI Center for Freedom & Prosperity praises the work of the House Oversight Committee and its chair, Karen Macbeth (D, Cumberland), for uncovering the information and formally petitioning the SEC to initiate its probe.

The value of a good-government check-and-balance mechanism, such as a fully-empowered oversight committee as one means of holding accountable those individuals and institutions that have betrayed their duty to the people of Rhode Island, should now be obvious to all.

“As I have commented previously, this is a dangerous time for democracy in our state. Similar abuses of power – apparently routinely used by the political class to advance various special-interest agendas – must be continue to be exposed,” commented Mike Stenhouse, CEO for the Center. “When we see the corrupt process by which 38 Studios, the Brookings economic development plan, and the trucker-toll bill were implemented – against the will or knowledge of the people – no wonder so many Rhode Islanders have such distrust of their government.”

The Center encourages legislative leaders to fully empower Macbeth’s and other oversight committees to pursue investigations as they see fit.

Media Contact:

Mike Stenhouse, CEO
401.429.6115 | info@rifreedom.org

About the Center

The nonpartisan RI Center for Freedom & Prosperity is Rhode Island’s premiere free-enterprise research and advocacy organization. The nonprofit Center is funded entirely by private tax-deductible donations and never accepts public funding. The mission of the 501-C-3 organization is to return government to the people by opposing special-interest politics and advancing proven free-market solutions that can transform lives by restoring economic competitiveness, increasing educational opportunities, and protecting individual freedoms