Washington, D.C. – As the Senate continued its third week of debating financial regulatory reform, U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., pushed for changes that would keep Big Brother out of our lives. In a floor speech to his colleagues he touted protecting consumers without requiring a new unchecked federal super agency to meddle in every day financial interactions.
“The federal government should not be involved in our daily lives and everyday decisions. The proposed bill opens the flood gates of government involvement. The federal government would be telling us how we could spend our money, how we save for the future and by making decisions for us, would truly limit financial markets to the point of economic decline. The federal government should not operate with the belief that it is protecting us from ourselves,” said Enzi.
“The federal government should not be involved in our daily lives and everyday decisions. The proposed bill opens the flood gates of government involvement. The federal government would be telling us how we could spend our money, how we save for the future and by making decisions for us, would truly limit financial markets to the point of economic decline. The federal government should not operate with the belief that it is protecting us from ourselves,” said Enzi.
“What is really important for the public to know is that this bill could protect people, but it could also potentially go ten steps further and take away some of their decision-making power and transfer it to the federal government. For example, as the bill stands, it is so overreaching and ambiguous in areas -- it could impact everyday purchases for most Americans.”
S. 3217, the Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010, as currently written would regulate “consumer financial products or services” as well as “service providers”. This ambiguous language could penalize anyone who buys or sells something on an installment plan. It could also affect any local small business that offers some kind of monthly payment on credit.
“Anyone who ever paid for dental care in installments could, in the near future, be facing the prospect of paying for dental work up front, as dentists realize they cannot afford to keep up with new federal financial regulations, additional regulators or the cost of compliance with new demands,” said Enzi. “Dentists didn’t cause the financial crisis, yet this bill punishes them.
Alternative Solutions
Enzi cosponsored an amendment that failed the Senate by a vote of 38-61. The amendment would make changes that address many concerns with the financial regulatory reform bill. The changes would create a Consumer Protection Division within the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, not an entirely new Bureau in the Federal Reserve as outlined in S. 3217, that would focus on consumer education and ensuring consumers receive timely and understandable information regarding consumer financial products. The Division Director would be presidentially appointed and Senate confirmed for a four-year term and be required to testify before Congress twice a year for additional oversight. The Division would regulate bad actors who have already broken consumer protection laws, but it would not regulate or write rules impacting small businesses without FDIC Board approval. This alternative strengthens cooperation between existing regulators without adding conflicting new rules and over-reaching agencies.
“People are more concerned over their freedoms right now than they ever have been and this will take away freedoms. You have to have the freedom to make choices and even to make bad choices. In America that’s the way it works and big brother isn’t allowed to hang over your shoulder to decide for you whether you’re making a good decision,” said Enzi.
To read Enzi’s full statement, click here.
For a shorter YouTube clip, click here.
