BankThink

Republican Attack on Dodd-Frank Begins with Hearings and a Survey

Gearing up for the two-year anniversary of Dodd-Frank House Republican's launched a campaign "to convince the electorate that Dodd-Frank's rules are hurting everyday Americans rather than just the financial sector,” writes American Banker’s Kevin Wack.

As part of the campaign, which includes six hearing on the legislation’s impact, the House Financial Services Committee launched a survey titled: "Think the Dodd-Frank Act's Impact is Felt Only on Wall Street? Think again," with set-up questions such as "Do you purchase food for yourself and your family?" (even a negative reply will generate a  "Did you know..” response blurb arguing how such average Americans will be affected.)

The cost to consumers of each individual part of Dodd-Frank might be tolerable, "but when you take these all together, cumulatively, it will prove extremely onerous," said Rep. Scott Garrett, R-N.J during one of today’s hearing.

"Last year, House Republicans were generally mum on the question of whether Dodd-Frank should be repealed. Now their message is that a targeted approach to eliminating some of the law's most onerous provisions makes better sense than a full repeal of the law," writes Wack.

The Republican message was countered by Anne Simpson, senior portfolio manager for the California Public Employees' Retirement System. "Those arguing that we cannot afford the cost of regulation are in danger of being penny wise and pound foolish," she said during testimony.

For the full piece see "House Republicans Launch New Push Against Dodd-Frank" (may require subscription).

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