Committee InfoDescriptionHow much control should the federal government have over the financial services industry in the United States? When has an institution become “too big to fail?”These are just a few of the key questions addressed in the Financial Stability Improvement Act, which was introduced by Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee Barney Frank (D- MA) on November 3, 2009. As the Dow Jones Industrial Average begins its slow recovery from losses of over 50% of mid-2007 values the committee is taking steps to ensure that similar situations do not arise again. On November 18th HFS member Paul Kanjorski (D-PA) introduced a controversial amendment to Frank’s bill, giving financial regulators the power to dismantle and control financial institutions that have been deemed “too big to fail.” Contention arose and resulted in a party-line vote of 38 in favor and 29 against because of provisions in the amendment enabling the dismantling power even if those firms currently appear to be well-capitalized and healthy.1 With the housing sector still experiencing and expecting future losses, and an increasing public outcry over the bailout of financial institutions, the House Financial Services Committee faces many problems of paramount importance to the future of the country. Chairman Frank, along with the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee, oversees both the housing and financial services sectors of the American economy. This includes agencies associated with banking, insurance, real estate, and securities. The committee weighs in on matters which relate to regulatory groups such as the Federal Reserve, the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation), the International Monetary Fund and the U.S. Department of Treasury. It is also responsible for the enforcement of housing and consumer protection laws such as the U.S. Housing Act, the Truth in Lending Act or the Fair Credit Reporting Act. During its long history, the Financial Services Committee has dealt with a wide array of issues, ranging from regulating Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to contributing to passing financial privacy laws. It has also been helping to curb corruption in government finance and handling matters related to government sponsored insurance problems like the National Flood Insurance Program. Some of the more significant roles of the committee included legislation that led to the creation of the Federal Reserve and the War Finance Corporation – both of which happened before 1963, when the committee was still known as the Committee on Banking and Currency. The committee was particularly important during the Great Depression, when it weighed in on the revaluation of the dollar, dropping the gold standard, and even a Federal takeover of the banking system. Originally, the Ways and Means Committee was actually responsible for much of what HFS currently oversees, yet the rapid increase of the financial services sector in the late 19th century led to the necessity of creating the new committee. There are currently 71 members, including the chairman, 29 of which represent the Republican minority and 42 the Democratic majority. The six subcommittees of HFS are: Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises, Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity, Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology, Subcommittee on International Monetary Policy and Trade, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. Recent activity by the committee has included HR 3269, the Corporate and Financial Institution Compensation Fairness Act of 2009, which was passed by the House on July 31, 2009 and is pending approval in the Senate. This bill provides the SEC with new authority by requiring all public traded companies to allow equity holders to vote on the executive compensation packages provided by firms to upper level management. Another piece of legislation, this one by HFS member Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), is HR 627, the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009, which was signed into law by the President on May 22, 2009. One of the primary focuses of the committee towards the end of 2009 is the markup of the Financial Stability Improvement Act so that it can be brought to the House floor. On December 8th the full committee will hold a hearing on “The Private Sector and Government Response to the Mortgage Foreclosure Crisis.” For more information on the House Committee on Financial Services, please visit: http://financialservices.house.gov/index.shtml Additional Resources, including a record of Congressional Activities, can be found at: http://thomas.loc.gov Background reading on financial markets and the current state of the economy are located at: http://online.wsj.com/home-page http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu ------------ Hello members of the White House Financial Services Committee, I’m Rob Meyer and I will be your chairman for this year’s conference. I am a sophomore at the Wharton School, concentrating in finance and management with a minor in classical studies. When I was at Clifton High School in northern New Jersey I was a member of model congress for four years. Last year I was chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee as well as a member of the CPC, while this year I am our Program Director. If you have any questions about Model Congress, finance and banking, or the University feel free to contact me at meyerro@wharton.upenn.edu. I look forward to working with you in one of the most relevant committees to today’s issues – see you in February. Hi everybody, my name is Marlena Filipowaska and I am a sophomore transfer student at The Wharton School. My concentrations are Finance and Retailing, but I actually spent last year as a History major at the University of Connecticut. Before UConn, I went to Clifton High School in New Jersey, where I was not a part of Model Congress - this is my first year as a chair of Penn MC. I am involved in a few other clubs, including Wharton Women, the Wharton Retail Club and the Advertising Departament of The Daily Pennsylvanian (Penn’s newspaper). If you have any questions about the Financial Services Committee, the conference itself or the school, please do not hesitate to send me an email at marlenaf@wharton.upenn.edu. I look forward to hearing from you and I am very excited to see you all in February! Chairs
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Account LoginConference DatesMarch 31 - April 3, 2011 RegistrationRegistration is now closed. InformationClick here for more details about PENNMC 2011! Check us out on Facebook!
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