Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) are introducing legislation to strengthen the SEC's ability to seek higher fines for securities laws violations. The bill would allow the SEC to impose fines of up to $1 million per securities law violation for individuals and up to $10 million per securities law violation for financial firms. Currently, SEC civil penalties are capped at $150,000 per offense for individuals and $725,000 per offense for firms. The legislation would also triple the cap on fines for repeat offenders. SEC Chairman Schapiro had previously requested these statutory reforms in a letter to Senator Reed on November 28, 2011.