WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.), a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, today issued a statement following the agreement to move to a vote on Wall Street reform legislation currently pending in the Senate.
“The story of the last years of economic disaster demanded action from Congress. Greed on Wall Street left American taxpayers with jobs destroyed and life savings drained, and then to keep the economy from going off the cliff, the taxpayers were forced to bail-out the big banks and big interests that made the mess. It was imperative to restore responsibility and accountability, and today’s vote is a critical step in that effort,” said Sen. Kerry. “This is a vote to rein in Wall Street, create jobs on Main Street, and protect consumers from fraud and abuse. It also will help restore confidence in our capital markets and our financial institutions while affirming the security of the financial system. This strong medicine is needed to end the era of ‘too big to fail.’
“It is also a victory for Massachusetts. Our workers and our businesses took it on the chin when Wall Street melted down. These reforms will fix what’s most broken, and Chairman Frank, Senator Brown, and I also worked collegially to ensure that Massachusetts’ financial firms which did no harm will continue to create jobs and engage in legitimate enterprise. Everyday actions by Massachusetts insurance companies to serve their clients are not restricted by the Volcker rule included in the bill, and Barney Frank will continue to safeguard Massachusetts in the conference committee. The agreement will help avoid burdensome additional regulation by the Federal Reserve on large financial firms that own a Trust or a limited purpose trust thrift. It will clarify that the everyday actions by Massachusetts insurance companies to serve their clients are not restricted by the Volcker rule included in the bill.”
Earlier this month, Senator Kerry worked with Treasury Secretary Geithner to ensure that the Obama Administration’s proposed bank fee was not imposed on Massachusetts’ insurance and financial firms that are not banks.
The Senate’s Wall Street Reform legislation:
- ends the possibility that taxpayers will be asked to write a check to bail out financial firms that threaten the economy by: creating a safe way to liquidate failed financial firms; imposing tough new capital and leverage requirements that make it undesirable for financial firms to get too big. Creates a council to identify and address systemic risks posed by large, complex companies, products, and activities before they threaten the stability of the economy;
- creates a new independent watchdog, housed at the Federal Reserve, with the authority to ensure American consumers get the clear, accurate information they need to shop for mortgages, credit cards, and other financial products, and protect them from hidden fees, abusive terms, and deceptive practices;
- includes the so called “Volcker Rule” to strictly prohibit banks and other financial firms from engaging in risky proprietary trading, investment in and sponsorship of hedge funds;
- eliminates loopholes that allow risky and abusive derivative practices to go on unnoticed and unregulated - including loopholes for over-the-counter derivatives, asset-backed securities, hedge funds, mortgage brokers and payday lenders; AND
- requires hedge funds to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission as investment advisors and disclose financial data to monitor systemic risk and protect investors.
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