The Bush Administration has trimmed $95 million from the Securities and Exchange Commission budget requested by chairman William Donaldson.

Donaldson had sought $983 million for the 2006 fiscal year, which will begin October 1, 2005, according to Dow Jones. The administration has responded with a proposal of $888 million — essentially the same amount as for the current fiscal year.

Of course, the administration is trying to scale back spending by many government agencies to help narrow the yawning budget gap. And it’s not unusual for individual agencies and the White House to engage in this ritualistic budget dance until they circle in on a specific figure that the agency then figures out how to adapt to relatively quickly.

According to the wire service, Donaldson recently testified before the House Appropriations subcommittee that if the commission received its full requested amount, it would have been able to introduce its new technology more quickly and “maintain the pace of our promotions.”

Donaldson also stated that the current administration proposal will result in a hiring slowdown in all SEC divisions, reported Dow Jones, but that the enforcement division would be “the last place that we would cut back on plans to hire.”