Financial Regulation

Financial Regulation

Commentary

Why #OccupyWallStreet?

October 07, 2011
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History Repeats Itself on Financial Reform

July 12, 2011

In the decades since the Great Depression, Americans acknowledged the necessity of having safeguards in place to prevent another crash of the financial markets, including the creation of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). When they were first introduced, Wall Street cried foul, according to the new report, “Industry Repeats Itself: The Financial Reform Fight,” found here. 

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The History of Consumer Protection Scares

September 09, 2009

By Tim Fernholz. The American Prospect. September 9, 2009.

The Chamber of Commerce and other business interests tried to kill the proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency with 'death panel' tactics -- exaggerating the affects of the legislation and making it seem as though it would harm ordinary Americans. But these kinds of moves aren't unusual. In the 1970s, there was momentum toward creating a Consumer Protection Agency that would act, essentially, as a kind of clearinghouse for consumer complaints, rather than an actual regulator with enforcement powers. Its opponents also reacted with outrageous rhetoric.

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Cry Wolf Quotes

Facing a possibility of 20 years in jail and $5 million fines, executives are going to spend lots of time going over financial statements, and less time creating, innovating and leading,”

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James Glassman, resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute
09/20/2002 | Full Details | Law(s): Sarbanes-Oxley Act

[The government involvement in the economy] is so overwhelming and beyond anything we have ever seen, that we risk moving this country away from a government of the people to a government of the regulators.

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Thomas Donohue, President of the Chamber of Commerce
07/14/2010 | Full Details | Law(s): Affordable Care Act, Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act

The Securities Act of 1933 created a serious obstacle to recovery, through its drastic regulation of the issuance of new securities by private enterprise. The Banking Act of 1933 created an additional impediment through the provisions of Section 16 prohibiting the national banks from participating in underwriting securities after June 16, 1934.

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George Houston, National Association of Manufacturers, Vice President
03/13/1934 | Full Details | Law(s): Security Exchange Act of 1934

Our concern is that ... it will create a one-size-fits-all federal system that will marginalize both directors and shareholders.

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Tom Quaadman, executive director of the Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
05/21/2010 | Full Details | Law(s): Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
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Related Laws and Rules

Backgrounders & Briefs

Industry Repeats Itself on Financial Reform

As the nation approaches the first anniversary of the Dodd-Frank financial reform law, opponents are claiming that the new measure is extraordinarily damaging, especially to Main Street. But industry’s alarmist rhetoric bears striking resemblance to the last time it faced sweeping new safeguards: during the New Deal reforms. The parallels between the language used both then and now are detailed in a report released today by Public Citizen and the Cry Wolf Project.

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Resources

Political Economy Research Institute is a think tank focused on a variety of subjects such as diverse financial regulation, living wages and environmental protection.

Consumer Federation of America defends the consumer interest in fields ranging from housing and financial services to food safety. 

The Service Employees International Union represents workers the public sector and a variety of industries in the United States.

The National Community Reinvestment Coalition works against unfair lending and banking practices, particularly those targeted towards low and middle income families.

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