Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), the highest-ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, has accused SEC Chair Paul Atkins of potentially lying to Congress, an illegal act punishable with imprisonment. This accusation was made during a hearing about the SEC's plummeting number of new enforcement actions under the second Trump administration. The SEC released its enforcement data for 2025, which showed only 456 new actions last year, 200 of which were filed by the outgoing Biden administration. This has raised questions about the regulator's willingness and capacity to protect investors and the markets. The crime of making a materially false statement to a congressional committee is punishable by a fine and up to five years in prison.