The Improving Disclosure for Investors Act: What Happened to the E-Delivery Bill

Updated October 2026, after the SEC proposed its own e-delivery rule. First published March 2024.

The bill this post covered in March 2024 was S. 3815, the Improving Disclosure for Investors Act of 2024. Senator Thom Tillis introduced it on February 27, 2024, with Senator John Hickenlooper as the original cosponsor. (The first version of this post misspelled Tillis's first name and listed Hickenlooper as the lead sponsor.) The Senate never voted on it, and it died when the 118th Congress ended in January 2025.

The idea didn't die. The House has passed the same text twice inside larger bills, and on July 16, 2026, the SEC proposed its own rule, Regulation E-Delivery, that would let firms make electronic delivery the default without waiting for Congress. Here's what the bill would do, where it went, and what the SEC proposed.

What the Bill Would Require

The Senate bill and its 2025 House successor share the same core text. The SEC would have to propose rules within 180 days of enactment and finalize them within a year. The rules would let covered entities meet their delivery obligations electronically. Covered entities include registered broker-dealers, and the regulatory documents include confirmations and account statements under Rule 10b-10.

The bill builds in protections for investors who want paper:

• an initial communication in paper form;
• a transition period of no more than 180 days;
• for up to two years, an annual paper notice reminding investors they can opt out;
• the right to opt out of electronic delivery at any time and receive paper.

Two other provisions stand out. If the SEC misses the deadline, electronic delivery would be deemed to satisfy the obligation anyway. And the consumer consent requirement in section 101(c) of the E-SIGN Act wouldn't apply.

Where the Bill Went

The SEC's Regulation E-Delivery Proposal

On July 16, 2026, the SEC proposed Regulation E-Delivery. Chairman Paul Atkins said in his statement that "a default to paper delivery should be a relic, not a standard." According to the fact sheet and the proposing release:

• The rule would "permit, but not require," firms to use electronic delivery as the default.
• A firm could rely on it when the recipient has provided an electronic address, the firm has given a prominent disclosure that it will send information there, and the recipient hasn't opted out.
• Information that contains personal financial information would go by a "statement of availability," such as an email with a link, rather than as an attachment. Other information could go directly to the electronic address.
• Customers now on paper would get two paper notices before a firm switches them: one at least 180 days before the transition and a follow-up 30 days before.
• Information delivered under the rule would be exempt from the E-SIGN Act's consumer consent requirements.
• For broker-dealers, the release names trade confirmations, Form CRS disclosures, and Regulation S-AM disclosures among the covered documents.
• It would supersede the SEC's 1995 and 1996 e-delivery guidance entirely, keep most of the 2000 guidance, and rescind Rule 30e-3 for fund shareholder reports.

The proposal was published in the Federal Register on July 21, 2026, and comments closed September 21, 2026. As of October 2026, it hasn't been adopted. The release itself notes that the INVEST Act "has not been enacted."

How the Bill and the Proposal Compare

They aim at the same result: electronic delivery by default, with an opt-out and free paper on request. The bill would order the SEC to act on a deadline and make e-delivery count if it didn't. The proposal gets there by rule, which a future Commission could change more easily than a statute, as several of the SEC's 2023-era rules show. The paper notices differ too. The bill calls for an initial paper notice plus annual reminders for two years, and the proposal calls for two paper notices before the switch.

What Broker-Dealers Can Do Now

Until a final rule is adopted, electronic delivery still runs on the SEC's guidance from 1995, 1996, and 2000, under which informed consent is one way to show that delivery happened. If you expect to move customers to default e-delivery, the preparation is the same under either path:

1. List every document you deliver to customers, including confirmations, account statements, Form CRS, and privacy notices, and mark which ones contain personal financial information.
2. Count the customers who have an electronic address on file, and how many of them have already consented.
3. Decide how you'll send the paper transition notices and record opt-outs.
4. Make sure your records show what was sent, to which address, and when, for every delivery method you use.

This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For guidance on specific regulatory obligations, consult your counsel or compliance advisor.