Senate Committee Passes Dodd Bill

The sweeping financial regulation legislation introduced by Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT) cleared its first hurdle last Monday, passing out of the Senate Banking Committee. With provisions that include consumer protections overseen by the Federal Reserve, regulation of derivative products, a mechanism for systemic financial risk assessment, and providing officials with the power to seize “too big to fail” firms on the brink of collapse, the legislation has been heralded as the biggest financial regulatory overhaul since the Great Depression. As reported by the Washington Post, while the Committee voted along party lines, the bill will likely incorporate a number of Republican modifications prior to a vote of the full Senate.