SENATE TAKES HISTORIC STEP TOWARD REINING IN WALL STREET, PROTECTING CONSUMERS

TexPIRG

Statement from Melissa Cubria, Advocate,Texas Public Interest Research Group

“Senate passage of the Restoring American Financial Stability Act, S. 3217, tonight was long over-due and sets the stage for final passage of an historic reform. This bill to rein in Wall Street is a bill that Main Street will like. While the bill isn’t perfect, it includes strong measures to rein in Wall Street’s casino bets, regulate the shadow derivatives markets, protect consumers and prevent future economic meltdowns.

We urge Congressional leaders to use the conference process to select the strongest provisions of the House and Senate bills while rejecting the efforts of lurking Wall Street lobbyists to weaken or delay passage of a strong final law.

Today, the Senate declined to vote on the anti-consumer Brownback amendment to immunize car dealers from oversight of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, leaving in place broad authority for the consumer watchdog over non-bank lenders.  This is an important improvement over the House passed bill.

Passage of the Restoring American Financial Stability Act includes a strong, independent Consumer Financial Protection Agency, preserves some authority for state attorneys general to enforce the laws, opens up the shadow markets where derivatives are traded, and ends, once and for all, ‘too big to fail.’”