A new federal law that could have prevented the crisis from spilling over into a new housing bubble has been blocked in the Senate.
House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) says the bill, known as the Financial Institution Accountability and Transparency Act, or FIRITA, is too complex to pass the House.
But the legislation is still under consideration in the House and is expected to come to the floor for a vote next week.
“The House will not vote on the bill until the Financial Institutions Accountability and Safety Act is fixed and properly implemented,” Upton said on the Senate floor Thursday.
The legislation would require that every bank in the U.S. report all suspicious transactions it has made to the Federal Reserve, and requires all financial institutions to keep a record of transactions made to them.
It would also require that financial institutions hold information about the sources of money that banks transfer to them, as well as a detailed account of every loan they make.
The bill would also give regulators the authority to impose fines on banks if they fail to report suspicious transactions.
But the House passed the bill in a 217-213 vote earlier this month, and it will now go to the Senate for consideration.
It’s unclear what the Senate will do next, though Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who chairs the House Banking Committee, has been outspoken in his opposition to the bill.
“It’s a complex law that has been mired in politics, and we have been slow to understand it,” Schiff said at the time.
“The legislation is complicated.
It’s going to require a lot of input and collaboration from stakeholders.
The legislation needs to be carefully considered before it’s voted on.”
The House Financial Services Committee, which oversees the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is expected vote on FIRITIA at a hearing Thursday. “
And that’s what the bill is all about.”
The House Financial Services Committee, which oversees the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is expected vote on FIRITIA at a hearing Thursday.
The panel is currently considering two bills, one that would have made the Dodd-Frank financial reform law permanent, and another that would require all new banks to have financial transparency policies.
