Financial Services Chairman ToRetire

WASHINGTON - (11/02/05) -- Rep. Michael Oxley, the OhioRepublican who chaired the House Financial Services Committee forthe past five years and a staunch credit union supporter, announcedTuesday he will retire at the end of next year, his 13th term inCongress. Oxley, 61, who has represented Ohio's 4th district since1981, cited the GOP's six-year term limits on committee chairman asone of the main reasons for his decisions. Next year will be hissixth as head of the Financial Services Committee. Oxley is bestknown for his co-authorship of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, whichrequires greater auditing and disclosures of publicly tradedcompanies. He has also been a big friend of credit unions,regularly speaking at CUNA and NAFCU conferences and taking care toinclude credit union provisions in legislation, like the pendingregulatory relief bill. "Every day that he was head of thecommittee you felt like there were things getting done. You feltlike there was a guy guiding the process who had both politicalsenses and policy understanding," John McKechnie, chief lobbyistfor CUNA, told The Credit Union Journal. Oxley's retirement willset off a free-for-all among Financial Services subcommitteechairman to be the next full committee chair. The early favoritesare Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., who chairs the subcommittee onfinancial institutions; and Rep. Richard Baker, R-La., who chairsthe subcommittee on Government Sponsored Enterprises.