House Passes Most Significant Pro-Growth Financial Regulatory Reform in Generation
May 23, 2018 / Source: Financial Services Committee
Press Releases
House Passes Most Significant Pro-Growth Financial Regulatory Reform in Generation
Washington, May 22, 2018 –
Today, the House of Representatives voted 258-159 to pass the “Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act,” which represents the most significant pro-growth financial regulatory reform package since the passage of Gramm-Leach-Bliley nearly a generation ago.
“For far too long, far too many people in our country have struggled to make ends meet. They’ve struggled to buy a car; they’ve struggled to buy a home; they've struggled for their version of the American Dream. Why is this happening? Because Main Street banks and credit unions that Americans depend on have been stifled by the weight, load, volume, complexity and cost of heavy Washington bureaucratic red tape which has prevented them from serving their communities. But today, that changes,” said House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling.
“Although we didn't have a formal conference with the Senate, I look forward to continuing to work with colleagues on both sides of the aisle and in both chambers to build on the progress we achieved here today with an additional package of bipartisan pro-growth capital formation provisions that the House and Senate will vote on soon,” concluded Hensarling.
Approximately half of the bill – including ¾ of the regulatory relief provisions and nearly 90% of the capital formation provisions – originated in the House of Representatives. Indeed, the leadership of the House is being hailed as instrumental in achieving this historic bipartisan achievement.
Gramm-Leach-Bliley co-author Senator Phil Gramm said, “The oppressive regulatory burden of the Obama-era forced community financial institutions to spend capital on compliance officers instead of loan officers and the economy suffered. Thanks in large part to Chairman Jeb Hensarling, that is about to change. The passage of S.2155 represents the most significant pro-growth financial legislation since the Congress adopted the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act in 1999. The bill is a major step toward allowing the banking system to serve the needs of American business and American families instead of the political designs of the government. If the Senate will now adopt the additional regulatory relief provisions that the House has adopted overwhelmingly, Congress will have taken a vital step toward bringing back the 3% growth rate that, prior to the Obama era, had been part of America’s birthright.”