Albany, N.Y. ? Regulators began meeting with Wall Street investment firms Friday to discuss fines, reportedly totaling more than $1 billion, for misleading investors with poor research.

The firms will be given ranges of impending fines during meetings through Tuesday with New York state Atty. Gen. Eliot Spitzer’s office, the Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory groups, a source close to the talks told The Associated Press.

The fines will depend in some cases on the willingness of the firms to implement changes to prevent future investment advice abuses and conflicts between firms’ stock analyses and their investment-banking business, the source said.

The Wall Street Journal first reported Friday that the fines could total more than $1 billion. Citigroup faces an assessment of more than $500 million, and Credit Suisse First Boston could be fined about $200 million, the Journal reported.