WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Robert Pittenger (NC-09), Vice Chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Terrorism and Illicit Financing, voted to approve the Financial CHOICE Act.
“In 2010, President Obama’s Dodd-Frank financial reform appeared to many as a lifeline. The evidence shows it has done more harm than good,”explained Congressman Pittenger. “The Financial CHOICE Act ends taxpayer-funded bailouts of big banks, creates even tougher penalties for Wall Street fraud, and creates accountability for Washington bureaucrats who currently answer to no one.
“Smart regulations are always necessary for an orderly economy, but Dodd-Frank swung the pendulum far into over-regulation. That slowed down the economy and made it difficult for small business owners to obtain capital and credit to expand and create jobs. The Financial CHOICE Act restores common sense, and that will help the economy grow.”
The Financial CHOICE Act:
· Eliminates Wall Street bailouts: Repeals the Dodd-Frank authority of the Financial Stability Oversight Council to designate firms as “systemically important financial institutions,” which virtually guaranteed future taxpayer bailouts. Creates a new chapter in the bankruptcy code to accommodate the failure of large financial institutions without taxpayer bailouts.
· Protects consumers by increasing penalties for financial fraud.
· Removes unnecessary regulations on small businesses and community banks: Dodd-Frank requires small businesses and community banks to be regulated to the same degree as massive Wall Street banks. This unnecessary regulation makes it hard for small businesses to grow and create jobs.
· Removes Dodd-Frank’s Soviet-style, centralized planning controls over the American economy, including a provision to replace the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s single, unaccountable “financial dictator” with a bipartisan, five-person commission.
The Financial CHOICE Act was approved by the House Committee on Financial Services by a 34-26 vote and will now be sent to the full U.S. House of Representatives for consideration.
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