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Rep. Scott Garrett: Financial CHOICE Act will help spur economic growth

Scott Garrett Parkway Elementary School in Paramus

by Congressmen Scott Garrett

Ridgewood NJ, THE MOST important financial decisions in life aren’t made in Wall Street board rooms or by bureaucrats in Washington — they’re made around kitchen tables. Around these tables families look at their bills, their savings, their job prospects and their personal finances and try to figure out how to get ahead in this terrible economy. Unfortunately, the Dodd-Frank Act, the law that was enacted in 2010 with huge promises of economic recovery, has stifled the financial success of families, businesses and entrepreneurs.

And while you might not know Dodd-Frank by name, you have certainly felt its impact in your wallet. The architects of Dodd-Frank crafted an onerous maze of regulations and rules that put Washington priorities ahead of the needs of American families. Since Dodd-Frank became law, free checking has largely disappeared, and the American Dream has become more difficult to make a reality — especially if you’re self-employed — since it’s become harder to obtain a loan to buy a new house or start a business. In fact, the rate of new business start-ups is near a 20-year low, and last month’s jobs report was the worst since 2010.

Not only has Dodd-Frank made it harder for Americans to get ahead, it makes yet another bailout of Wall Street more likely. During the 2008 crisis, the taxpayers were forced to bail out big banks considered “too big to fail.” Today, those banks are bigger, and Dodd-Frank enshrines in law the expectation that taxpayers will once again be on the hook for costly bailouts.

I’m joining my colleagues on the House Financial Services Committee to propose a blueprint for American financial success. The Financial CHOICE Act — which stands for Creating Hope and Opportunity for Investors, Consumers and Entrepreneurs — is designed to revitalize economic growth through competitive capital markets. This plan will fix the problems of Dodd-Frank by increasing punishment for crooks, ending taxpayer bailouts, scaling back poorly designed regulations and holding Washington accountable to We the People.

Penalties for fraud

To better protect consumers, the Financial CHOICE Act imposes the toughest — and most expensive — penalties in history for fraud and deception. The Securities and Exchange Commission will have new authority to increase punishment for repeat offenders and link fines to investor losses. This will make sure that fraudsters who stole or scammed huge amounts of money from inno-cent people won’t get just a slap on the wrist for their crimes.

Our plan offers economic opportunity for all and bailouts for none. Dodd-Frank made promises to end “too big to fail” that were never kept. We can end this cycle by forcing failing institutions to file for bankruptcy. Our plan reforms the bankruptcy code to protect taxpayers and instill much-needed market discipline. Taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook for the mistakes of big banks and Wall Street, and under our plan they never will be again.

One of the key tenets of the Financial CHOICE Act is an optional “off-ramp” for financial institutions to break free of Washington’s one-size-fits-all rules. But the condition for being free of excess regulation is a strong capital standard, which means that banks will be forced to hold assets to back up their liabilities. By passing the CHOICE Act, we can both manage liabilities and let banks do what they do best: invest in the next American Dream.

Washington desperately needs transparency. Dodd-Frank created bureaucracies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that gave immense power to a single, politically appointed director who makes economic decisions on your behalf. The CFPB tells you what financial products you can have or not have because they think they know what’s best for you when it comes to loans, mortgages and car purchases.

Our plan makes the CFPB, and other unaccountable agencies, into bipartisan commissions. We would also require all financial regulations to undergo strict cost-benefit tests to make sure they’re not doing more harm than good. And we would change the system to ensure that all major financial regulations are approved by Congress before they are imposed on the American people.

Resistance by banks

I expect that it will be difficult to get support for bottom-up solutions like the Financial CHOICE Act in Washington. This plan is hated by big banks and crony capitalists that are all going to lose influence and power over the rest of America if this bill is passed. However, I believe that Congress can make this necessary reform with the support of people who are more concerned about the financial decisions made around kitchen tables than they are with protecting the interests of Washington insiders.

People in northern New Jersey don’t need economic reports to tell them that the economy is still in bad shape. We see it every day in our bank accounts and in our towns. Recovery can happen, and we can be prosperous again, but it has to start in our communities — not in Washington. The Financial CHOICE Act can help make that possible.

Rep. Scott Garrett, R-Wantage, serves New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District. He is chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises.

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Garrett Questions Enormous Increase in SEC budget at a time when Agency Seems Less and Less Effective

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April 22,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ,  Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises Subcommittee Chairman Scott Garrett (NJ-05), delivered the following remarks at a hearing entitled “Continued Oversight of the SEC’s Offices and Divisions”:

Congressman Scott Garrett’s opening remarks as prepared for delivery:

Today, the Subcommittee will continue its efforts to conduct vigorous oversight of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and in particular the individual offices which make up the SEC

In the last two years, our Subcommittee has heard testimony from the directors of the Trading and Markets, Corporations Finance, Enforcement, and Investment Management Divisions at the SEC

These hearings have allowed us to take a more thorough look at the agency’s operations, rulemaking agenda, and enforcement practices so that we can better understand whether the SEC is appropriately carrying out its three-fold mission to protect investors, maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets, and (last but certainly not least!) facilitate capital formation

So I welcome our witnesses today and look forward to hearing their testimony – I hope that between the four of you, we are able to cover a lot of ground

Back in 2000, the SEC’s operating budget was about $369 million; today, the SEC has a budget authority for Fiscal Year 2016 of a little over $1.6 billion

And the SEC has recently submitted a request to bring its Fiscal Year 2017 budget up to nearly $1.8 billion

So during much of the time when Congress has been accused of starving the SEC of the funds it needs to fulfill its mission, its budget has actually quadrupled in the last fifteen years

It would be one thing if this four-fold increase in funding coincided with an agency that has become four times as effective

Instead, we are likely to look back at this period as a time when the SEC missed some of the greatest frauds in history, was ill-prepared for the financial crisis of 2008, failed to properly incorporate economic analysis into rulemakings, and, more recently, has often times been complicit in advancing the priorities of special interests

Unfortunately, instead of addressing some of the fundamental structural issues at the SEC, the Dodd-Frank Act created more offices within the agency – two of which we will hear from today

Dodd-Frank also granted the agency vast new rulemaking authority that the SEC has often times struggled to implement appropriately

For example, while the SEC has made strides towards improving the economic analysis that underlies its rulemakings, there is still much more work to be done in this area

It’s not acceptable for the SEC to simply say “Congress made us do it” and therefore assume that a rulemaking is beneficial, as the SEC did with its “pay-ratio” rule last year

It’s also incumbent upon the SEC to clearly articulate a problem or market failure that their rules are intended to address, which should be obvious but is still unfortunately lacking in many of the Dodd-Frank rules being implemented

So I’m eager to hear about some of the steps the SEC is taking to further improve its economic analysis

I also continue to have concerns over recent rulemakings related to credit rating agencies

While there is broad agreement that certain provisions in Dodd-Frank – such as the removal of references to credit ratings in regulations – were much needed and directly address one of the causes of the financial crisis, I worry that many of the other micro-managing rules included in Dodd-Frank have had the effect of further stifling competition in the credit rating agency industry.

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Garrett Hits Back at SEC Official’s Defense of Commission’s Overuse of In-House Tribunals and callously disregard due process

Scott Garrett

Feb 2, 2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ,  Rep. Scott Garrett (NJ-05), Chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, issued the following statement after a senior SEC enforcement official last week defended the Commission’s increased use of in-house administrative law judges.

“It’s extremely distressing to see a senior SEC enforcement official so callously disregard the Constitutional and due process concerns that have been raised over the SEC’s in-house tribunals.  The Commission is missing the point that this isn’t about how many cases are won or lost – it’s about protecting every American’s due process rights and their ability to have a fair trial.  The SEC has become more concerned about making headlines than executing an effective enforcement program, and these comments are reflective of that approach.”

Garrett continues to put pressure on the SEC unlike Garrett’s Democratic challenger Josh Gottheimer who is a big proponent of Dodd – Frank and the institutionalization of the “too big to fail ” policies for all financial institutions . Gottheimer would have the government continue to bail out poorly run banks and Wall Street firms .

Garrett is the author of the Due Process Restoration Act that would  rein-in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s controversial overuse of in-house administrative law judges and ensure that all Americans are given due process by allowing defendants the option of having their case heard before a federal court.

In the wake of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, which granted the SEC expanded administrative enforcement powers, the SEC started trying an increasing number of alleged wrongdoers before its in-house administrative panels rather than in the federal courts established by Article III of the Constitution.

The SEC has heard repeated criticism of these in-house panels from defendants who feel they weren’t given due process, former SEC judges who felt pressure to rule in favor of the Commission, and U.S. District Judges who find the panels unconstitutional.

The Commission announced that it will be giving more legal safeguards to defendants that come before its in-house administrative panels. Unfortunately, the SEC’s proposed changes fall well short of addressing many of these concerns and its enforcement practices continue to violate the separation of powers guaranteed by the Constitution.

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Wyckoff Democrat launches campaign against Scott Garrett, Bailouts ,Bailouts and More Bailouts

Joshua S

February 8,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Wyckoff NJ, Former White House speechwriter  officially will seek to oust U.S. Rep. Scott Garrett (R-5th Dist.) with an announcement Monday afternoon in Northvale. U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) is scheduled to be there as well.

The Wyckoff Democrat Gottheimer is a former speech writer for President Bill Clinton and worked in corporate strategy for Microsoft. He grew up in North Caldwell and has lived for the past four years in Wyckoff with his wife and two children.

“Scott Garrett isn’t pro-family,” Gottheimer said. “He’s not pro-business. He’s Dr. No. Dr. No to everything, and that hurts families here in New Jersey.”

So what is Josh Gottheimer for ? In one word BAILOUTS!

At a September possible Democratic candidate Gottheimer fundraiser that came less than a week after James Cicconi, the RINO Republican head of external affairs at AT&T Inc., and JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Peter Scher hosted another one for the Democrat.Attendees included executives from Blackstone, Comcast, Verizon, McGraw Hill, U.S. Telecom Association, Tribune Media, United Health, Ogilvy & Mather, Raben Group and Akin Group. The invitation for the event had said it was “an excellent opportunity to oust one of the most conservative members of the House of Representatives.”

Bloomberg News, which was the first to report plans for the Cicconi fundraiser, said some business executives had already been growing tired of Garrett. They were apparently bothered by his vote against big spending former Speaker John Boehner,and were troubled that he has opposed the crony driven , taxpayer funded corporate welfare,  Export-Import Bank.

Garret also strongly opposes bailouts and in 2010 said , “The American people are tired of the safety net that has been provided to Wall Street. They want to put an end to the continued bailouts, and the bill currently under consideration in the Senate fails to accomplish this task. Wall Street is not afraid of this bill – as a matter of fact, Goldman Sachs, the same bank that has been charged by the SEC with fraud — and which also happens to have been President Obama’s single largest corporate donor in 2008 — has endorsed much of it. Goldman supports the bill because they know that it gives them and others an advantage in the marketplace by allowing their shareholders and creditors to be bailed out if they get into trouble because of the risks they take. …. We must end the era of bailouts and stop rewarding banks like Goldman Sachs with regulation that fails to protect American taxpayers.”

This stand against corporate bailouts and industry sponsored Dodd Frank has made Garrett unpopular in certian parts of the business community . In 2011 Garrett issued a strongly worded statement on Dodd Frank and the institutionalized “too big to fail policy”  , “In the wake of the financial crisis of 2008, Democrats insisted that more regulation was the answer to our problems and that they had the right prescription to address the ailments of our financial system.  As it turns out, the 2,000 page bill they produced was not the right solution.  One year after it was signed into law, Dodd-Frank has done little to prevent another financial collapse, it has failed to streamline and simplify regulation, and it has actually codified ‘too big to fail’ and taxpayer bailouts into statute.  When the American people asked for limited government, less burdensome regulation, debt reduction and, most importantly, job creation, this was hardly the solution they had in mind.”

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Garrett Calls “Too-Big-To-Fail” a virus in our banking system and says Dodd-Frank increased the likelihood that taxpayers will be on the hook for additional Wall Street bailouts

bank-of-america_theridgewoodblog

 

January 16,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, In November  Rep. Scott Garrett (NJ-05), Chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, questioned Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen about the Fed’s use of cost/benefit analyses on new regulations. Chair Yellen testified before the House Financial Services Committee today and admitted to Rep. Garrett that the Fed has no plans to conduct an economic analysis that would determine the cumulative impact that hundreds of new rules prescribed by Dodd-Frank and the Basel Committee will have on the economy.

Garrett spoke earlier last year saying “ the Dodd-Frank Act was signed into law amidst promises that the legislation would protect American consumers, make our economy more competitive, and end ‘too big to fail.’ Instead, Dodd-Frank has stifled economic growth, made it more difficult for Main Street businesses to obtain credit, and increased the likelihood that taxpayers will be on the hook for additional Wall Street bailouts. Most importantly, this law has and has made it harder for Americans to find a job, buy a home, and save money for their family’s future.

“Despite creating new bureaucracies that have imposed thousands of pages of rigid, invasive, and unworkable regulations, Dodd-Frank did nothing to reform the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, whose actions caused the 2008 financial crisis. Now more than ever we need solutions that expand economic freedom and opportunities for hard-working American taxpayers. I look forward to working with my colleagues in order to protect our economy from the harsh reality of Dodd-Frank.”

“I believe we have a virus in our banking system that is stifling competition and innovation. It protects incompetent management and insulates antiquated business models from market discipline. It incentivizes the largest banks to grow even larger and makes these mega-banks captive to government influence. This “Too-Big-To-Fail” virus is now poised to spread beyond banks to other types of financial firms. Not surprising, it is the government that is preparing to label other financial firms “Too-Big-To-Fail” by designating them as systemically important and spreading these market distortions.

 

The Spectacular Too Big Failure of Dodd-Frank

Quick-to-fix regulation often creates unintended consequences
Dodd-Frank ultimately destroyed the community bank
Consumers lost choice and completion, although farmers were hurt most

By Edward Morrissey

February 12, 2015

Not much unites the activist Left and activist Right, and not much ever has. After the near-collapse of the fiscal sector in 2008, though, populist movements on both sides found momentum in opposition to government bailouts of private-sector firms, especially in the financial industry.

“Too big to fail” became a mantra used to leverage massive taxpayer bailouts of financial institutions. Those bailouts enraged conservatives who believed that government had largely created the “too big to fail” players that needed rescuing from bad government policy. At the same time, progressives angrily denounced the parachutes provided to Wall Street fat cats while ordinary Americans suffered through a period of tight lending and a poor economy — especially in the labor markets.

By the time 2010 rolled around, the two sides could agree on one thing: changes were necessary to unwind “too big to fail.” Conservatives wanted to push government out of lending and finance through tax and regulatory reforms that would end rent-seeking behaviors that perpetuated it. Progressives wanted more regulation and government intervention to force the industry to behave better.

Since Democrats controlled Congress and the White House in the spring and summer of 2010, they chose the progressive policy. Congress passed and President Barack Obama signed the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in July of that year – not long after passing the progressive Affordable Care Act that created massive government intervention in the health-insurance industry.

For the past eighteen months, the news media has focused on the failures and incompetence of the Obama administration in the ACA’s rollout and infrastructure. The impact of Dodd-Frank has largely been ignored, until now. According to a new study by the Harvard Kennedy School of Business, the attempt to end Too Big to Fail backfired – in a big way.

One problem that led to TBTF was industry consolidation, which had been steadily reducing the number of smaller community banks that made lending much more accessible to small business owners, farmers, and middle and working-class families. Over the past twenty years, the share of US lending handled by community banks has fallen by half, from 41 percent to 22 percent, while the share handled by large banks more than doubled from 17 percent to 41 percent.

https://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Columns/2015/02/12/Spectacular-Way-Too-Big-Failure-Dodd-Frank

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Garrett Votes to Help New Jersey Families Achieve Their Financial Goals

Scott_Garrett_took5_a_break_from_DC_theridgewood-blog

“How does the SEC expect average Americans to take the time to make thoughtful financial investments when the average annual report from public companies is a whopping 42,000 words long? Later today, the House will take up my bill to make SEC filings simpler and more useful for average Main Street investors. This will make it easier for everyone to reach their financial goals.” Rep. Scott Garrett

Sep 30, 2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Scott Garrett (NJ-05), Chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, today voted for a number of bills before the Financial Services Committee to preserve the ability of American families to access credit and invest for their future:

“Around dinner tables throughout the country, middle and lower income American families discuss their retirement savings as they plan for the future. Unfortunately, many provisions of Dodd-Frank and proposed rules by the Obama Administration are putting more government, more red tape, and more bureaucracy between these people and their financial goals. Today our committee passed a number of bills—many with bipartisan support—to ensure that everyone can access credit, get good financial advice, and invest for retirement.”

The House Financial Services Committee passed the following bills today:

H.R. 414, the “Burdensome Data Collection Relief Act”
H.R. 957, the “Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection-Inspector General Reform Act of 2015”
H.R. 1090, the “Retail Investor Protection Act”
H.R. 1266, the “Financial Product Safety Commission Act of 2015”
H.R. 2769, the “Risk-Based Capital Study Act of 2015”

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Rep Scott Garrett Questions Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Auto Dealer Sub Prime Lending

scott-garrett

House lawmakers pepper Cordray over dealer reserve

Wednesday, Sep. 30, 2015, 11:59 AM UPDATED 11:28 AM

By Nick Zulovich
Editor

WASHINGTON, D.C. –

Two of U.S. House membesr who are two of staunchest defenders of dealers and how the indirect auto financing model currently operates — one that still includes dealer reserve — peppered the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau who made his semiannual appearance before the Financial Services Committee on Tuesday.

Like many of his fellow lawmakers, Rep. Scott Garrett referenced a series of recent reports from American Banker recapping internal memos and other documents about the CFPB’s use of disparate impact to generate a “tipping point” enforcement action that might discontinue the practice of dealer participation altogether.

The New Jersey lawmaker then directly asked CFPB director Richard Cordray, “Are you working to eliminate dealer reserves?”

Cordray replied with, “We have been working to try to address a practice that we believe is discriminatory, discretionary markups.”

He added that the CFPB is out “not necessarily to eliminate,” dealer participation. “We had an enforcement action (Monday) in which it would limit dealer reserve, not eliminate it. And we think that might be a fair way to try to address the issue,” Cordray went on to say.

What Cordray referenced was the CFPB enforcement action against Fifth Third Bank, which included a mandate to cap dealer markup at either 1.25 percent or 1 percent depending on the length of the vehicle installment contract.

During a back-and-forth exchange between Garrett and Cordray that had each individual interrupt each other multiple times, the House lawmaker insisted he was asking these questions because “dealers are on the front lines of making these loans.”

Cordray replied with how the Dodd-Frank Act was written that created the CFPB four years ago.

“We have authority in the statute. It doesn’t exempt the auto industry. It exempts auto dealers. It doesn’t exempt auto lenders. We have a responsibility to address auto lenders. We understand we are exempted from addressing auto dealers,” Cordray said.

“Congress drew the statute. I didn’t draw it. I have to live with it. It exempts auto dealers, but gives us responsibility over auto lenders. I’m not sure that makes a lot of sense, but we’re trying our best to observe the lines that Congress drew,” he continued.

“It’s a funny provision in the statute. I’m not sure it’s very logical,” Cordray added.

Before Garrett’s time for questioning expired, Cordray also told the lawmaker that vehicle financing is “made by the auto lender. The auto lender controls the auto lending program.”

And with institutions such as Fifth Third Bank as well as American Honda Finance now restricted on how much dealer markup is allowed, Garrett also questioned whether the CFPB understands the implications on dealerships and their ability to generate revenue by these enforcement actions.

“What I would say is this,” Cordray said, “As we do our work … it does effect auto dealers. I would agree with you on that. That’s why the provision is not very logical.”

Finally, Garrett tried to get Cordray to acknowledge the CFPB’s actions are increasing the consumer costs of making a vehicle purchase based on a wide array of studies from the American Financial Services Association, the National Automobile Dealers Association and other organizations.

https://www.autoremarketing.com/subprime/house-lawmakers-pepper-cordray-over-dealer-reserve

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Garrett Pushing Transparency and Accountability for “To big to fail” bailout rules

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Garrett Introduces Bill to Hold FSOC Accountable to the American People
Sep 18, 2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Scott Garrett (NJ-05), Chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, today introduced H.R. 3557, the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) Transparency and Accountability Act, to bring much-needed transparency and accountability to the FSOC.

“The Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) is one of the most notorious examples of the kind of secretive and unaccountable government bodies that could only be a creation of Washington, D.C.  The Dodd-Frank Act vested the FSOC with the authority to designate nonbank financial institutions as “too big to fail,” essentially giving them unprecedented authority over an entire sector of the U.S. economy without adequate checks and balances.

“The Council continues to hold closed-door meetings, refuses to publish substantive transcripts, and stonewalls requests from the people’s representatives when we need more information about its operations.  No agency should be allowed to operate above the law in this way, and my bill will shed some much-needed light on this shadowy government body.”

Garrett’s legislation would:

Subject the FSOC to the Government in the Sunshine Act
Subject the FSOC to the Federal Advisory Committee Act
At all FSOC meetings, allow for the participation of all members of the Commissions and Boards represented
Require that any vote taken by the principal of a Commission or Board represented must first be taken by that Commission or Board and the principal must then in turn vote that same decision at the Council
Allow for Members of Congress on the Congressional oversight committees of FSOC to be able to attend all FSOC meetings

A previous version of the legislation passed the House Financial Services Committee in June, 2014.

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High cost of Dodd-Frank is harming US banks and citizens

dodd frank

By John Alan James

On the fifth anniversary of the signing of the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and a panel of regulatory experts gathered at an American Enterprise Institute meeting to discuss the impact of the legislation on America’s economic system.

Hensarling has been successful in finding bi-partisan support in modifying some financial regulations, particularly where federal courts have contended that regulators have failed to prove the benefits of the suggested remedies. But in his recent speech at the Institute, he made it clear that his ultimate goal is the repeal of the Dodd-Frank Act.

Fines and legal fees paid by financial institutions have risen dramatically in the past five years. Violations of regulations covering money laundering and sanctions have been extremely costly to banks, with penalties negatively impacting balance sheets and shareholders’ equity.

The Dodd-Frank Act has expanded the role and power of the federal government in corporate affairs and created a new and growing need for compliance risk management. The job of chief compliance officer, responsible for the implementation of internal and external governance policies and procedures, has grown from a clerical position to a new type of professional often reporting directly to the board and primarily responsible to the chief executiv

https://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/economy-budget/250887-high-cost-of-dodd-frank-is-harming-us-banks-and-citizens

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The Financial Deregulation That Never Was

dodd frank

Norbert Michel ,CONTRIBUTOR

I follow the evolution and devolution of monetary and financial policy

Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

Why do I write so much about the myth that financial market deregulation caused the financial crisis? Because that false narrative has spread so far and wide. Even some folks who are otherwise friendly to free-markets have bought into it.

So here’s one more shot: financial markets were not deregulated in any meaningful way during the last 100 years.

It is true that federal regulators changed many rules and regulations over the century, but the notion that the new rules amounted to a lack of rules is dead wrong. Federal regulators have increasingly told banks and non-bank financial firms what they can do and how they can do it.

Last week, when discussing this topic, my friend Mark Calabria mentioned some evidence I had missed: Todd Conover’s Congressional testimony in the 1980s.

Conover was the head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) from 1981 to 1985, and his 1984 testimony (all 655 pages) is available on the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank’s website. The testimony is yet another piece of evidence that banks were not deregulated.

But it also serves as evidence that Dodd-Frank and the new Basel III capital rules’ emphasis on so-called macro-prudential regulation is not as new as regulators would like us to believe.

As they tell the story, the new regulations will make markets safer because now, finally, regulators will focus onsystem-wide safety (a macro-view) as opposed to focusing only on the safety of individual banks.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/norbertmichel/2015/08/10/the-financial-deregulation-that-never-was/

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Hensarling: Dodd-Frank made country ‘less financially stable’

bank-of-america_theridgewoodblog

Five years ago today, the Dodd-Frank Act was signed into law amidst promises that the legislation would protect American consumers, make our economy more competitive, and end ‘too big to fail.’ Instead, Dodd-Frank has stifled economic growth, made it more difficult for Main Street businesses to obtain credit, and increased the likelihood that taxpayers will be on the hook for additional Wall Street bailouts. Most importantly, this law has and has made it harder for Americans to find a job, buy a home, and save money for their family’s future. Rep Scott Garrett

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9vApbUrnDM

 

By Kevin Cirilli – 07/20/15 07:22 PM EDT

House Financial Services Committee chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) will say in a policy speech on Tuesday that the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform law has made the country “less financially stable.”

Hensarling’s attack on the fifth anniversary of Dodd-Frank, will come during a speech at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.

“The Dodd-Frank architecture, first of all, has made us less financially stable,” Hensarling will say, according to excerpts obtained by The Hill. “Since the passage of Dodd-Frank, the big banks are bigger and the small banks are fewer… Dodd-Frank concentrates greater assets in fewer institutions. This is bad policy and bad economics.”

He will argue that Dodd-Frank’s regulations — despite being written largely for financial institutions — have impacted “grocery markets, cable TV servers and bowling alley chains” that “must comply with regulations imposing wage controls, salary ratios and private compensation disclosures made for Wall Street investment firms.”

Hensarling made similar arguments on Saturday, when he delivered the Republicans’ weekly address, as well as in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal published earlier Monday.

Liberals like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) have argued that Dodd-Frank didn’t go far enough in regulating the markets.

They have criticized the financial industry for lobbying heavily against Dodd-Frank to weaken its regulations.

https://thehill.com/policy/finance/248582-hensarling-dodd-frank-made-country-less-financially-stable

 

 

 

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Scott Garrett Hosts Bipartisan Group of Business Leaders and members of Congress on the Fourth Anniversary of Dodd-Frank

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Scott Garrett Hosts Bipartisan Group of Business Leaders and members of Congress on the Fourth Anniversary of Dodd-Frank
July 28,2014

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On the Fourth Anniversary of Dodd-Frank  Rep. Scott Garrett hosted three roundtable discussions with a bipartisan group of Members of Congress and key financial services leaders and CEOs. The purpose of our talks was simple: protect your retirement investments and ensure that all Americans can continue to invest in great businesses and ideas. The panelists offered their insights and the discussion was lively .

Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises,had previously issued the following statement to mark the four year anniversary of the Dodd-Frank Act:

“It’s been four years since President Obama signed Dodd-Frank into law and our economy’s anemic growth since that time is just one example of why it is ineffective. In addition to holding back the economy, Dodd-Frank also puts unsuspecting American taxpayers on the hook for endless Wall Street bailouts. The sad news is that the consequences of this heavy-handed law continue to creep into every U.S. industry. Now more than ever, we need solutions that address the real issues behind the 2008 financial collapse, protect taxpayers, and ensure that the U.S. continues to have the most robust capital markets in the world.”  

 

these heavy hitters are listed as attendees:

Fred Tomczyk, president and chief executive officer of TD Ameritrade

Robert Greifeld, CEO, NASDAQ OMX;

Joe Ratterman, CEO, BATS Global Markets;

Jeffrey Sprecher, CEO, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE);

Bryan Durkin, CEO, CME Group;

Edward T. Tilly, CEO, Chicago Board Options Exchange;

Matt Andresen, co-CEO, Headlands Technologies;

Daniel B. Coleman, CEO, Knight Capital Group;

Adam Nunes, president, Hudson River Trading;

Jamil Nazarali, head of Citadel Executions Services, Citadel Securities;

Doug Cifu, CEO, Virtu Financial;

Jamie Selway, managing director and head of electronic brokerage and sales, ITG;

Joseph Gawronski, president and COO, Rosenblatt Securities;

Brett Redfearn, head of market structure strategy, Americas, JPMorgan Chase Securities;

Jim Toes, president and CEO, Security Traders Association;

Kenneth Bentsen Jr., CEO, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA);

Bill Baxter, head of global program trading and market structure, Fidelity Management and Research, on behalf of the Investment Company Institute (ICI); and

Patrick Hickey, head of market structure, Optiver, on behalf of the FIA Principal Traders Group.

 

list provided by CNBC’s Bob Pisani https://www.cnbc.com/id/101871271

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Rep Scott Garrett Marks the Fourth Anniversary of Dodd-Frank reminding us of the burden it puts on American taxpayers for endless Wall Street bailouts.

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Scott Garrett at Fed Chair Yellen  testimony 

Rep Scott Garrett Marks the Fourth Anniversary of Dodd-Frank reminding us of the burden it puts on American taxpayers for endless Wall Street bailouts.
Jul 21, 2014

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, issued the following statement today to mark the four year anniversary of the Dodd-Frank Act:

“It’s been four years since President Obama signed Dodd-Frank into law and our economy’s anemic growth since that time is just one example of why it is ineffective. In addition to holding back the economy, Dodd-Frank also puts unsuspecting American taxpayers on the hook for endless Wall Street bailouts. The sad news is that the consequences of this heavy-handed law continue to creep into every U.S. industry. Now more than ever, we need solutions that address the real issues behind the 2008 financial collapse, protect taxpayers, and ensure that the U.S. continues to have the most robust capital markets in the world.”