FRIDAY, JULY 16, 2010
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Politics & The Nation After a year of debate, Congress passes financial regulation bill regulation from A1 Under the new rules, the vast
market for derivatives, complex financial instruments that helped fuel the crisis, will be subject to government over- sight. Shareholders, meanwhile, will gain more say on how corpo- rate executives are paid. Obama, who is scheduled to sign the legislation next week, said Thursday that the bill will “protect consumers and lay the foundation for a stronger and safer financial system, one that is innovative, creative, competi- tive, and far less prone to panic and collapse.” The legislation places much faith — and much authority — in regulators to spot brewing prob- lems in the financial system and to prevent another crisis. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-
Conn.), who shepherded the bill through the Senate, said the leg- islation will help restore Amer- icans’ confidence in the badly battered financial system. “More than anything else, my goal was, from the very beginning, to cre- ate a structure and an architec- ture reflective of the 21st centu- ry in which we live, but also one that would rebuild that trust and confidence.” The Dodd-Frank bill — named
after Dodd and Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), who ushered it through the House — passed by a vote of 60 to 39. Three Repub- lican senators — Scott Brown of Massachusetts and Olympia J. Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine — joined 57 members of the Democratic caucus in sup- port. Sen. Russell Feingold of Wisconsin was the lone Demo- cratic opponent, saying the measure didn’t go far enough. Some liberals have criticized the bill for failing to more ag- gressively alter the structure of Wall Street and for leaving so many critical decisions to feder- al regulators, who missed many of the warning signs before the crisis. “It’s the dumbest argument
I’ve ever heard,” Dodd count- ered. “What do they expect me to write, a 100,000-page bill? This is far beyond the capacity, the ex- pertise, the knowledge of a Con- gress” to detail every new reg- ulation, he said. Meanwhile, most Republicans continued to argue that the bill creates bigger, more intrusive government and fails to prevent future bailouts of financial com- panies using taxpayers’ money. These critics joined with leaders in the banking and business communities in insisting that the new regulations will under- mine the competitiveness of the U.S. economy, stifle growth and kill jobs at a time when un- employment is high. “The White House will call this a victory,” said Senate Mi- nority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). “But as credit tightens, regulations multiply and job creation slows even further as a result of this bill, they’ll have a hard time convincing the Amer- ican people that this is a victory for them.”
With midterm congressional
elections nearing this fall, Dem- ocrats are eager to claim that they were tough with Wall Street after the worst financial upheav- al in decades, even as Repub- licans insist that the bill adds to the burden of Main Street busi- nesses.
Although the hard-fought leg-
islative battle concluded Thurs- day, the task of working out the details of scores of new reg- ulations and adapting to the new regulatory landscape was al- ready underway across much of the federal government. For weeks, Treasury officials
have been holding daily meet- ings to plan how they would car- ry out the wide-ranging bill. Similar efforts have been taking place at other agencies, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Depos- it Insurance Corp., and the Fed- eral Reserve, each of which will have new responsibilities. The Treasury Department has already assigned dozens of em- ployees to carry out various pro- visions, such as the creation of the consumer protection bu- reau. “We’d like to implement this
stuff with focus and determina- tion,” said one of several senior Treasury officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity be- cause the details had not yet been worked out. The official added: “We want to get it right. Speed is one thing, but getting it right is another thing.” The legislation will roll out
various measures over time, en- suring that Washington and Wall Street will see the dramatic changes unfold over several years.
Almost immediately, a new
Federal Insurance Office will be set up, and the government will have the authority to seize big,
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failing companies as soon as the bill is enacted.
Within three months, the new Financial Services Oversight Council, including an assort- ment of regulators and chaired by the Treasury secretary, must hold its first meeting. Within six months, new rules providing shareholders with more of a say on executive pay take effect. Within a year, the consumer protection bureau must be up
and running, and the Office of Thrift Supervision — one of sev- eral bank regulators that failed to preempt the financial melt- down — will be abolished. Eigh- teen months out, new rules must be issued to restrict the trading that financial companies can do with their own accounts, a prac- tice known as proprietary trad- ing. And within two years, reg- ulators must propose simpler mortgage disclosure forms.
THE JULY
While the cogs and wheels of implementation already are turning, Thursday was a day of celebration inside the Treasury, at the White House and in the Democratic corners of the Capi- tol. The president praised the vote the moment he returned from a trip to Michigan. Treasury Secre- tary Timothy F. Geithner held a rare news conference on the steps of the Treasury. In the Sen-
on
washingtonpost.com What’s new
For an interactive look at the highlights of the financial regulation legislation passed Thursday, go to
wapo.st/reggraphic.
ate chamber, Dodd’s wife and two young daughters watched the final vote from the gallery, and Frank ventured over from the House side to share in the
handshakes and back slaps.
dennisb@washpost.com
Staff writer Jia Lynn Yang contributed to this report.
A7
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