Dodd-Shelby agreement clears way for amendment votes to Wall St. reform

Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) said he'd reached an agreement on elements of the Wall Street reform bill that will allow the Senate to begin voting on amendments.

Dodd, the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said he had reached an agreement with Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), the ranking member of that committee, on portions dealing with "too big to fail" financial institutions.

Dodd said that he expected a vote on the agreement, which will be offered as an amendment to the financial reform bill he has crafted, sometime early this afternoon.

The vote will be the first formal movement on the legislation since Republican senators allowed debate to begin late last week on the legislation. The Senate returned to session on Monday, but held no votes then, or on Tuesday.

"These measures will end the idea that any one company is too big to fail," Dodd said on the Senate floor early Wednesday afternoon.