1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Bad Actor Disqualification Act of 2017 . 2. Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that: (1) The automatic disqualification provisions in the securities laws are valuable tools that protect investors, the markets, and the public by deterring misconduct, reducing recidivism, promoting market integrity, and removing bad actors from the market. (2) These tools are inappropriately underutilized and waivers of the automatic disqualification provisions are disproportionately granted to the largest financial institutions on Wall Street, many of which are recidivists. Between July, 2003, and December, 2014, large financial firms received the vast majority of waivers of sanctions, about 82 percent of 201 total waivers. (3) Waivers of these automatic sanctions should be granted sparingly and only through an open and transparent process. 3. Increasing transparency and accountability in waiving bad actor disqualifications Section 36 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ( 15 U.S.C. 78mm ) is amended by adding at the end the following: (c) Waiver procedure and identification of bad actors (1) Waiver procedure (A) Temporary waiver (i) Petition for waiver A person may petition the Commission for a temporary waiver of a disqualification or pending disqualification described under subparagraphs (A) through (G) of paragraph (3). (ii) Grant of waiver With respect to a petition made by a person under clause (i), when such person becomes an ineligible person, the Commission may vote to provide such person with a single 180-day temporary waiver, by order, if the Commission determines that such person has demonstrated immediate irreparable injury. (iii) Publication of petition The Commission shall publish any petition for a temporary waiver along with the order containing an explanation for any Commission determination immediately following the related vote under clause (ii). (B) General waiver Following the 180-day period provided under subparagraph (A), the Commission, by vote