SEC headcount fell 18%, but its probationary ranks nearly vanished: down 78%
The SEC shed 885 employees by June 2026, an 18.4% cut that took the agency below every September staffing level since 2010. The damage was concentrated in its newest talent: conditional and trial ranks collapsed 78%, even as the market it polices grew to $120 trillion. Enforcement output held up last year, but the expertise and succession depth gone with it won't show in any output count.