Finreg ran into trouble because Robert Byrd died, and 3 Republicans, most notably Scott Brown announced intent to vote 'no' because of $19 billion in bank fees that were attached to the legislation literally in the final hour.
What's the big deal about a tiny $19 billion in total bank taxes to be collected from the 100 largest banks over a ten year period?
First, the $19 billion is needed to pay for implementation of the bill itself -- those are the assumed costs over 10 years, and the banks were (and should be) expected to pay since, you know, they are the ones who caused the freaking crisis in the first place. Now onto the objections from Brown, Collins and Snowe -- beholden to and captured by the banking industry, they don't feel the banks should have to pay this relatively small annual tax.
Not too surprisingly then, Dodd and Frank re-convened the conference committee this afternoon to find an alternative funding mechanism for the $19 billion in expected costs. And guess who was chosen to pay for the bill -- you were.
Dodd and Frank substituted TARP funds for the bank tax. So taxpayer funds originally intended to buy troubled assets from banks will now be used to cover the costs of regulating the TBTF banks that caused the crisis.
It's a super-galactic circle jerk where the taxpayer pays for everything, the banks nothing, and we're just supposed to smile, while they cash million dollar bonuses with our money.
If we can't get banks to pay $19 billion, we have absolutely zero chance of ever solving our long-term fiscal challenges.
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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The sweeping Dodd-Frank bank reform bill was amended Tuesday by a joint House-Senate conference committee to change the way the bill is funded, in order to address the objections of several key Republican senators.
Under the proposal by Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd, the projected $19 billion cost of re-regulating the financial system and paying for the possible liquidation of a large bank would be paid with unspent funds in the Troubled Asset Relief Program and by an extra premium charged to large banks by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
The amended bill will now go House and Senate for their approval. Democratic congressional leaders hope the bill can be passed this week.
Republicans on the conference committee denounced the new funding method as "fraudulent," "smoke and mirrors" and an "affront to the American people." They said the TARP funds are obligated to deficit reduction, and the FDIC funds are obligated to pay depositors of failed banks.
"How do you spend the money twice?" asked Sen. Judd Gregg, a New Hampshire Republican.