Transcripts For CSPAN House Debate On Dodd-Frank Rule 201706

Ensuring that our Financial System facilitates job creation, Economic Growth, and fairness. Nearly 10 years ago the American Economy cratered. The Great Recession of the late 2000s revealed that our Financial System was fragile and Many Americans got the short end of the stick. In 2010, the democrats passed h. R. 4173, the doddfrank wall consumer rm and protection act. They promised the bill would lift the American Economy. Wall omised an end to street bailouts. They promised to protect consumers. Seven years later we know that these promises never came true. Due to doddfranks wall excessive outs. Regulatory burden, big banks are getting bigger while small banks and Credit Unions are disappearing. They have only been six new Bank Charters since doddfrank, a drastic decline from the 170 on average per year before the bill. In fact, 43 of the banks with assets under 1200 million have disappeared. 100 million have disappeared. Large banks survived because hey can afford armies of lawyers to understand doddfrank regulations. In 2010 Goldman Sachs c. E. O. Even suggested his bank would be among the biggest beneficiaries of doddfrank. But for Community Banks with Community Budgets the effects of the law have been devastating. Doddfrank also failed to address the too big to fail problem. Under the new law, big banks are under doddfrank big banks are growing larger and taxpayers are still responsible for bailing them out. Furthermore, doddfrank has made access to banking and credit more difficult for average americans. Since the passage of the bill, bank fees have increased and millions more americans are now considered unbanked or underbanked. Declining liquidity has limited access to credit for Small Businesses. Antiregulatory restrictions on mortgages have pushed and the regulatory restrictions on mortgages have pushed homeownership out of reach for the middle class. 70 of Community Banks say the doddfrank regulations restrict their ability to offer mortgage loans. Mr. Speaker, this is not the price we must pay to be a hope if you and prosperous nafplgtse thats why im here supporting the financial choice act, it repeals doddfrank and replaces with a law to ensure Consumer Protection, job growth, Economic Growth, and strong Community Banks. The choice act sends ends the coddling of big banks. Timplements the historically h penalties on financial it implements the historically tough penalties on financial trading. Its time the congress put main street ahead of wall street. The choice act also reins in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Government Agency that has incredible power to regulate the financial industry but that has nearly no accountability. And the Judicial Branch has actually declared its structure unconstitutional. The cfpb is causing problems for consumers. They have a database for complaints from consumers but it publishes the complaints before even checking if they are true. The cfpb also weighs none Financial Regulations where congress should be making those decisions. Anticfpb wasted over 200 million on lavish renovations of their office space in downtown washington, d. C. This legislation were considering today will restore congressional oversight duties and moving the agency back under the regular legislative appropriations process. Well also be refocusing on the cfpb on enforcing Consumer Protection laws rather than making up their own laws that only hurt the average american consumer. Perhaps most important to coloradoans the choice act creates Economic Growth and jobs by making credit easier to access for main street america. And thanks to the taylor act, introduced by my friend and colleague from colorado, mr. Tipton, regulators will be able custom regulations to reflect the specific Business Model of local banks. This bill also creates jobs and Economic Growth by requiring more transparent policymaking at the federal reserve. We rein in stifling regulations on small Community Banks, allowing them to compete against their larger counterparts. We increase Consumer Choice by ensuring that americans can access a bank and a credit card. Mr. Speaker, we have the opportunity today to transform our nations Financial System. We have the opportunity to level the Playing Field between big and small banks. We have the opportunity to turn up the heat on financial fraud. We have the opportunity to return Regulatory Power from the hands of unelected bureaucrats to the people. We have the opportunity to roll back hurtful regulations. Were here to restore hope and opportunity through the choice act. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from colorado reserves. The gentlewoman from new york is recognized. Ms. Slaughter thank you, mr. Speaker. I thank my colleague for yielding me the time. And i give myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from is recognized. Ms. Slaughter seven years ago i brought the doddfrank wall street reform and Consumer Protection act to the floor of the house as chairwoman of the house rules committee. This law was a statement from congress on behalf of the American People that unchecked corporate greed will never again you bring the United States of america to financial collapse. My colleague began his speech this morning by saying that this law had not worked. But im not aware of Major Bank Failures or Bank Failures of any kind since we passed it, and i would say, indeed, this law has worked. Since it has been enacted, our economy has had over 80 consecutive months of private sector job growth. Thats pretty good. In fact, its record setting. More than 16 million jobs have been created. Business lending has been increased by 75 . Im not getting all the complaints that i used to get that they could not borrow money from banks, particularly the Small Businesses. Along the way the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau established under this law has people in all on of our 50 states to receive nearly 12 billion, 12 billion in relief from people in all co engaged in irresponsible or predatory practices. One group that sent us a letter begging us not to do away with this doddfrank was veterans of foreign wars who said that far too often their veterans were the victims of predatory lenders, sheisters, people not telling them the truth, and that exlacte what the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was established to do. You cant argue whether or not its been a success if 29 Million People in 50 states have gotten back 12 billion in relief from bad practices. But this legislation completely would do away with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The only thing we have to protect main street and the small investors. These gains werent a coincidence, mr. Speaker, they were the result of the doddfrank law. Gutting wall street reform would be a historic giveaway to special interests. The wall street firms who brought our country to the brink in 2008 would be free once again to take advantage of consumers, to force middle class families to go it alone, without the protections that this bill has provided them. Instead of standing with a financial lobbyists, i urge to uphold the trust of the people that we represent. Five years ago, democrats and republicans came together almost unanimously to pass my bill to end insider trading. It passed by 417 to 2. One of the most bipartisan bills of that entire session of congress. It wasnt easy. I led a sixyear fight to get it signed into law. They were making information from the money they demreend that was not available to everybody else in america. They gleaned this information while working on behalf of the people whose information they were stealing. Minute 60 investigation on tv. And for me upholding the Peoples Trust is the most sacred responsibility i have. And i want to strengthen the stock act to learn that some of this congress have used loopholes to get around this law. We have seen a free press shine the light that some members of congress purchased discounted stock deals and took part of Public Offerings. These special deals are not available to the general public. All this will remain in the dark put into place. This is the kind of outrageous conduct we intended to outlaw under the stock act and plays directly into the publics view. This, mr. Speaker, comes at a time when 20 of the public approves of how congress is doing its job under the majoritys leadership, that is the latest figure from gallup. This Congress Took a bipartisan stand against this behavior a few years ago but increasingly clear that we need to act again today to hold ourselves together to the letter and spirit of the stock act law. We are not doing that today. Once again, we are taking away the regulations. And the regulations that protect the small investor, the people in the banks. And i hope we will never see the day where we will ask the taxpayers of the United States to bail out the enormously rich big banks and one of the worst things of this era, not a single fraudulent banker went to jail. There are 535 of us in a country of more than 300 million. And we have been chosen to represent them. It is a sacred responsibility and not should be squandering of the wall street firms and those who are behind the choice act. The majority should stop fulfilling the wish list of wall street and act on behalf of millions of americans outraged trading and this chamber must take action so americans recognize we came here to represent them. Never to enrich ourselves and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from new york reserves. The gentleman from colorado. Mr. Buck i yield two minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. Williams. Mr. Williams i rise in support of this to end the harmful regulations. Let me take a few moments to talk to you about the harmful effects doddfrank has had on my home state of texas. A few months ago, in texas alone, 3358 state or federally chartered banks have either closed or merged since 2010 when doddfrank became law. According to our texas state banking commission, the last charter in texas was in 2009 in a state with one of the healthiest economies in the country. It has left texans few options. So what dodd frank aimed at fixing, one size fits all regulations have only hurt one person, that being the consumer. Increased bank fees, less access to Consumer Credit products, 1,000pages rules, regulatory costs, have become the hallmark of our Financial System. To my friends on the other side of the aisle, i will leave you with this. If you support crushing regulations that have hurt our Community Banks, our Credit Unions, if you support taxpayer bailouts, if you support an agency that is accountable to none and if you support less accountability for both washington and wall street, then would you please vote against this rule and the underlying bill. If you support financial opportunity for all, taxpayerfunded bailouts for none, less regulations on Small Community Financial Institutions and more accountability and transparency, then support this bill. Support consumers. And support main street america. Thank you, mr. Speaker. In god we trust. I yield back. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, i yield three minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. Doggett. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Doggett those wondering where republican lips are sealed so very, very tight when it comes to President Trump jeopardizing our national security, threatening our democracy and engaging in one crazy tweet after another, need look no further than this bill. You see, this is a bill to handcuff the cop on wall street. And so many of our republican colleagues are eager to shield wall street from action and eventually to be stow one tax break after another on wall street that they are willing to pay almost any price in silence concerning mr. Trumps out rages. As a person who voted against all of the big bank bailouts, im most concerned that this bill will produce only more. When the banks were bailed out, American Families paid the price as taxpayers and they paid the price for the recklessness that led to that unnecessary financial crisis. A more immediate concern is what happens to the cop on the beat, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a new Law Enforcement agency that aarp described as one designed to hold scam artists accountable and thats exactly what its done, whether its pay day lenders or deceitful language in mortgages, contracts denying consumers legal remedies to address wrongdoing or many other issues, this agency has been there to protect the consumers. And among those most threatened that have benefited from this Law Enforcement agency are our military families who face unique financial challenges from illegal foreclosures to pay day lenders who overcharge their families, this Law Enforcement agency has been there to protect them. And today, it would be bstantially weakened by this legislation. Aun one of the leading examples of the success of this Law Enforcement agency is wells 75 fined 100 million, million in call backs from executives, a c. E. O. Resigned. None of that happened to the other banks but wells fargo was caught and it was caught because it was a Law Enforcement agency on the beat doing something about it. And there are those who fought this legislation from the start and they wont give up on trying to undermine it. You need only look at what happened this year in Enforcement Actions to see what this agency is doing. A company failed to provide redress for illegal collection tactics, deceive consumers about credit scores, misstated the charges related to pawn loans, denied consumers from their own money, kept options in the dark, one bit of wrongdoing after another, why not have a cop on the beat to do it . Because some people want to have unlimited right to exploit consumers and this is the one thing standing in the way to protect them. I say stop this republican interference with Law Enforcement and send a message at the same time to President Trump that the laws apply to him also and ought to be enforced against him when he is engaged in wrongdoing and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from new york reserves. The gentleman from from colorado. Mr. Buck i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from new mexico, mr. Pearce. Mr. Pearce i thank the gentleman for yielding. One of the most deceptive things that congress does is regulate one part of another industry for the problems created by another part. The Community Banks have nothing to do with the collapse in 2008. It was wall street. The people in new york. Those big banks. And yet the doddfrank regulation kind of let them scoot by and while many of the main street businesses and many of the main street banks have closed down. My friend just mentioned wells fargo. C. F. P. B. Were mute while conducting their affairs. It was a county prosecutor who actually uncovered it. So this idea that we here in congress are going to do things that are going to get it in check simply is not true. What is true is that the agency created by doddfrank the cfpb, this bureau was so annoying that it put new mexicos most sparsely populated county about eight people per square mile in to be regulated the same as new york city. Thats much they understood. They shut down the loans for manufactured housing. That Means Nothing to the people in new york, but in new mexico thats 350 of the homes in my district. Cfpb, the bureau didnt much care. They limited the ability of regular banks to make loans on mortgages establishing something called qualified mortgages. They simply said all balloon notes are prejudicial. Those things were hurting and penalizing the rural parts of this country. The people who suffered most were the people at the lowest end of the economic