Committee votes for Consumer Financial Protection Agency; Manzullo votes against it

From press release, online sources

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Rep. Don Manzullo (R-16) voted against the Consumer Financial Protection Agency Oct. 23 as a member of the House Financial Services Committee. The committee, however, supported the agency in a 39-29 party-line vote.

If created, the agency would have the power to write new consumer protection rules for activities involving loans or credit.

Following are Manzullo’s remarks:

“This bill is absolutely shocking. It is one of the most pervasive pieces of legislation to come before me during my time serving in the House of Representatives. It gives extraordinary authority to the federal government to regulate transactions and assess fees. This bill has the reach to permeate nearly every sector of the economy, and could strap millions of people and small businesses with regulations and new taxes disguised as fees. Instead of charging consumers to provide ‘protection,’ I would support creating an oversight council among existing agency chairmen to identify risks and develop uniform rules to protect consumers.

“This bill is so broad and vague it could give the federal government the authority to impose regulations on children who, as power of attorney, handle their senior parent’s checkbooks, or churches and nonprofit agencies that offer classes on personal finances,” Manzullo added. “It will slap new regulations on physicians and hinder how they process their billing. We do not need another increasing the costs medical care.”

In support of the agency, President Barack Obama (D) said: “The Consumer Financial Protection Agency will prevent predatory lending practices and other abuses and will ensure that consumers get clear information they can understand about financial products like credit cards and mortgages.

“This bill has now passed a major hurdle, and this step sends an important signal to the American people that we will not stand by and allow big financial firms and their lobbyists to mobilize against change,” Obama added.

Follow the latest action on the bill at http://www.thomas.gov/cgi-bin/thomas.