Merkley Joins Dodd to Announce Financial Regulation Reform Bill
Doing the work he was elected and sent to Washington, D.C. for, we applaud and salute Oregon’s junior Senator Jeff Merkley (our former State Representative from east Portland) today for working to reverse the devastation visited on the American financial system through years of purposeful deregulation.
The release from his office follows:
Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley joined Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and fellow committee members today to announce the beginning of committee work on a package of financial regulatory reform legislation.
The reform package takes on the key systemic risks that led to this crisis: unregulated derivatives, dangerous securitization, and conflicts of interest at credit rating agencies, while dramatically improving the ability of bank regulators to supervise the financial system.
“We’ve seen that the wizards of Wall Street have used the increasingly complex financial system to hide extremely risky transactions that have created devastating results for the rest of us,” said Merkley. “That’s why I’m extremely proud to stand here today with Chairman Dodd to begin the process of putting these vital reforms into place.”
A top priority for Senator Merkley has been the inclusion of a strong Consumer Financial Protection Agency that will regulate consumer credit products, protecting American consumers from financial tricks and traps and our economy from systemic risk.
“The Consumer Financial Protection Agency will to put an end to many of the predatory practices that strip wealth from working families. We want a financial system that builds the foundations for families to succeed, not one that sets them up for financial ruin,” Merkley said.
Senator Merkley also pushed for the inclusion of several specific provisions, including:
Expanded authority for the GAO to audit the Federal Reserve so that taxpayer dollars in emergency lending programs are accounted for but that the Federal Reserve’s independent monetary policy and its role as lender of last resort are protected;
A GAO study to determine the best way to reduce systemic risk and conflicts of interest created by high-risk proprietary trading by major banks; and
Whistleblower protections for employees who report financial institution violations to the Consumer Financial Protection Agency.
