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Senate advances bill funding Dodd-Frank financial reforms
The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday approved a 2013 spending bill that fully funds President Obama’s signature financial reform law.
The 2013 Financial Services appropriations bill was approved on a party line 16 to 14 vote. Most of next year’s spending bills have received bipartisan support this year, but most Republicans voted against this bill over its funding for the Dodd-Frank reforms to Wall Street.
The measure provides the Securities and Exchange Commission with $245 million in new funds to implement the Dodd-Frank law and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) with $102.7 million.
In contrast, the House's Financial Services bill, heading for a markup next week, effectively cuts SEC funding by hampering its ability to spend from a reserve fund, while the House Agriculture bill, which covers the CFTC, does not give the commission the money it needs.
Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) said there were “no instructions” to have a party line vote. He said he was voting against the bill because of frustration with the CFTC’s rulemaking process on Dodd-Frank.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said she supports the Dodd-Frank law and actually voted against the bill because it contain provisions that conflict with the postal reform bill she authored that the Senate passed in April.
“It is completely unfair and inaccurate to say the work of this committee is being dictated by partisan concerns,” she said. “My vote has nothing to do with the Financial Reform.”
She objected to language Durbin inserted in the bill to force the Postal Service to reconsider the closings of processing plants. Durbin also included language maintaining rural post offices and six-day delivery.
Collins said the piecemeal policy robs her postal reform bill of momentum. Durbin said the House is dragging its feet on moving a bill so the language is necessary.
Democrats defeated an attempt to block the Internal Revenue Service from enforcing the “individual mandate” requirement that all adults obtain health insurance or face a tax penalty, passed as a part of President Obama’s healthcare reform law. That attempt failed on a party line vote of 16 to 14.
Overall the Financial Services bill provides $22.99 billion in funding for 2013, and adheres to last August’s debt ceiling deal. This is a $1.26 billion increase from 2012 but $341 million below Obama’s 2013 budget request.
It increase tax collection funding by 6 percent to $12.5 billion
This contrasts to the House version, which spends $21.15 billion. The contrast ensures an appropriations showdown likely after the 2013 fiscal year begins on Oct. 1.
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