Kaptur Introduces H.R.2176 ‘To Restore Glass-Steagall Act’

April 10, 2019 (EIRNS)—Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), on April 9, as the House Financial Service Committee was holding a largely toothless hearing of major Wall Street bank CEOs, introduced a bill to restore the Glass-Steagall Act into the 116th Congress. The bill, H.R.2176, had 25 originating cosponsors, all Democrats, who are listed below. In addition, Kaptur was publicly supported by the AFL-CIO, Communications Workers of America, Public Citizen, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, and Take On Wall Street.

Representative Kaptur said that among other provisions, “The Return to Prudent Banking Act amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDIA) to prohibit any insured depository institution from being an affiliate of any broker or dealer, investment adviser, investment company, or any other person or entity engaged principally in the issue, flotation, underwriting, public sale, or distribution of stocks, bonds, debentures, notes, or other securities.”

The act would allow a maximum of two years for separation and divestiture. It “Requires the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Comptroller of the Currency, or another appropriate federal banking agency to report to Congress a detailed description of the basis for its decision each time it makes a determination or grants an extension concerning such bank separation.”

And it expands its prohibitions of the original 1933 Glass-Steagall Act against the transaction of deposit-and-loan banking activities by securities firms.

Originating cosponsors are Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT-3); Rep. Susan Wild (PA-7); Rep. Stephen Lynch (MA-8); Rep. Ro Khanna (CA-17); Rep. Jackie Speier (CA-14); Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12); Rep. Jan Schakowsky (IL-9); Rep. Peter DeFazio (OR-4); Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-At-Large); Rep. Jim McGovern (MA-2); Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN-5); Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (HI-2); Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-9); Rep. Pramila Jayapal (WA-7); Rep. Chellie Pingree (ME-1); Rep. David Cicilline (RI-1); Rep. Anna Eshoo (CA-18); Rep. Paul Tonko (NY-20); Rep. Peter Welch (VT-At-Large); Rep. Barbara Lee (CA-13); Rep. Grace Napolitano (CA-32); Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-2); Rep. Raul Grijalva (AZ-3); Rep. John Yarmuth (KY-3); Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40).