Feingold Opposes Financial Reform Bill

Feingold to Vote Against Reform Bill

Opinion: Financial Reform Bill is a Good Start

Overall, the U.S. Senate’s “Restoring American Financial Stability” reform bill is a start in the right direction, writes Bob Chernow, a Milwaukee-area futurist who has worked in the financial industry for more than 40 years, in the Milwaukee Small Business Times.

Fed Board Proposal a ‘Travesty,’ Banker Says

A Senate proposal to remove bankers from Federal Reserve boards “is an overreaction to a particular unique situation, and to have bankers removed from these boards is a travesty,” said Mark Hewitt, chief executive of Clear Lake Bank and Trust Co in Iowa and a director at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. Read the Reuters news story.

Opinion: Feingold Right to Oppose Reform Bill

Wisconsin’s U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold was right to vote against the financial reform bill in Congress, writes Capital Times editor John Nichols. “Feingold wanted real reform. And the American people should recognize that they are not getting it in the legislation the Senate passed,” he wrote in an opinion piece.

WBA: Financial Reform Bill Needs Work

The financial regulatory reform overhaul passed by the U.S. Senate yesterday fails to address the root causes of the housing collapse and subsequent financial crisis, according to the Wisconsin Bankers Association in a news release posted on WisBusiness.com.

Gov. Doyle Bans Auto Title Loans

Gov. Jim Doyle banned auto title loans in Wisconsin by using his partial veto power to cross out parts of a payday lending bill so that it read: “No licensed lender may make a auto title loan.” The new law limits payday loans to $1,500 or 35 percent of the applicant’s monthly income, whichever is less, and borrowers may only roll over loans one time. Read the Associated Press article.

Combined Reporting Raising Business Tax Bills

Wisconsin Rep. Leah Vukhmir (R-Wauwatosa), who is running for state Senate, called for a special session of the legislature to repeal combined reporting. Many businesses, including Brown Deer, Wis.-based Bank Mutual Corp., Harley Davidson and Rockwell Automation have seen their tax bills increase as a result of the 2009 law. Bank Mutual saw its effective tax rate increase by 6.1 percent, said CFO Michael Dosland. Read the Small Business Times article.

Opinion: Re-Regulate Wall Street

“The [financial reform] legislation moving through Congress will prevent future bailouts by eliminating the idea that some financial institutions can become too big to fail. It establishes a middle ground between bankruptcy and bailout with an orderly liquidation process, in case Wall Street firms once again run themselves into the extreme distress that forced taxpayers to save them in 2008,” writes Viterbo University Professor Keith Knutson in the La Crosse Tribune.

ATM Fee Limit of 50 Cents Proposed

U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) introduced an amendment to the federal financial reform package that would cap ATM fees to 50 cents per transaction, the Small Business Times of Milwaukee reported.