SEC Chair Paul Atkins has directed staff to prepare a path for the agency to assume direct control of the Consolidated Audit Trail, the market-wide system that captures orders and trades across U.S. equity and options markets, with a transition likely to run through late 2027. In an Aug. 10 letter to CAT Operating Committee Chair Robert Walley, Atkins said staff should evaluate how the SEC would fund, govern and operate CAT, including whether costs could shift to congressional appropriations or Section 31 transaction fees. He also asked for a proposed rule that would rescind Rule 613, which created CAT, while keeping the current infrastructure and technical reporting standards and continuing to require exchanges, FINRA and broker-dealers to submit the same data to the SEC or an agency-appointed operator. Atkins said prior reforms had lowered annual operating costs and ended the reporting of personally identifiable information, but that persistent governance and funding problems remain under the current joint national market system plan. After an April 16, 2026 concept release drew hundreds of comments, Atkins said investors and market participants made clear they want the SEC to take greater responsibility for managing and financing the project. Any transfer would still require SEC rulemaking, public comment and Commission approval before taking effect.