REFERENCE TITLE: urging Congress; Glass-Steagall Act |
State of Arizona House of Representatives Fifty-first Legislature Second Regular Session 2014
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HCM 2011 |
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Introduced by Representatives Peshlakai, Gallego, Thorpe, Senators Bradley, Reagan: Representatives Alston, Dial, Gabaldón, Hale, McCune Davis, Meyer, Miranda, Otondo, Quezada, Steele, Wheeler, Senators Barto, Dalessandro
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A CONCURRENT MEMORIAL
Urging the United States Congress to adopt H.R. 129, the Return to Prudent Banking Act of 2013, and S. 1282, the 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act of 2013.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
To the Congress of the United States of America:
Your memorialist respectfully represents:
Whereas, an effective monetary and banking system is essential to the proper functioning of the United States economy; and
Whereas, an effective monetary and banking system must function in the public interest without bias; and
Whereas, certain provisions of the Banking Act of 1933, commonly referred to as the Glass-Steagall Act, protected the public interest in matters dealing with the regulation of commercial and investment banking, in addition to insurance companies and securities firms; and
Whereas, the Glass-Steagall Act was repealed in 1999, during the Clinton Administration, contributing to the greatest speculative bubble and worldwide recession since the Great Depression by permitting members of the financial industry to exploit the financial system for their own gain in disregard of the public interest; and
Whereas, the worldwide recession caused the loss of millions of jobs nationwide and contributed to millions of homes being foreclosed, while many financial industry entities were saved by the United States Treasury at the cost of billions of dollars to the American taxpayers; and
Whereas, the worldwide recession also put severe financial strains on states, counties and cities, exacerbating unemployment and the loss of civil services; and
Whereas, within the hundreds of pages of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, there are no prohibitions that prevent "too big to fail" financial services organizations from investing in or undertaking substantial risks involving trillions of dollars of derivative contracts; and
Whereas, the American taxpayers continue to be at risk for the next round of bank failures as enormous risks are undertaken by financial services conglomerates; and
Whereas, in 2011, Democratic Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, along with Republican Congressman Mike Coffman, Chairman of the Balanced Budget Amendment Caucus, sponsored H.R. 1489, known as the Return to Prudent Banking Act of 2011, to reinstate the provisions of the Glass-Steagall Act; and
Whereas, H.R. 1489 was before the 112th Congress with 84 cosponsors and currently serves as the model for H.R. 129; and
Whereas, on January 3, 2013, Democratic Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur introduced H.R. 129, known as the Return to Prudent Banking Act of 2013, with cosponsor Republican Congressman Walter Jones to again introduce legislation to revive the separation between commercial banking and the Wall Street securities business in the manner provided in the Banking Act of 1933, the so-called "Glass-Steagall Act"; and
Whereas, H.R. 129 is currently before the 113th Congress with 78 cosponsors, three of whom are from the Arizona congressional delegation; and
Whereas, in March of 2010, Senators Maria Cantwell and John McCain introduced and cosponsored Glass-Steagall legislation in the United States Senate; and
Whereas, on July 7, 2013, United States Senators Elizabeth Warren, Maria Cantwell, John McCain and Angus King introduced S. 1282, the 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act of 2013, which would reduce risk for American taxpayers in the financial system and decrease the likelihood of future financial crises; and
Whereas, members of both the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate have been making efforts to restore the protections of the Glass-Steagall Act by reviving the separation between commercial banking and the securities business in the manner provided by the Glass-Steagall Act, which would reduce risk for American taxpayers in the financial system and decrease the likelihood of future financial crises; and
Whereas, the Glass-Steagall Act has widespread national support from prominent economic and business leaders and national publications, including Thomas Hoenig of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, former Citigroup Chief Executive Officer Sanford Weill, economist Luigi Zingales, the New York Times, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Los Angeles Times and many others; and
Whereas, as of September 9, 2013, eighteen states have filed resolutions requesting immediate action to restore the Glass-Steagall standard. Maine and South Dakota have passed those resolutions through both houses of their legislatures. In the remaining states, legislative action is still pending; and
Whereas, overwhelming pressure must be brought to bear on members of the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate to take action to pass this important legislation.
Wherefore your memorialist, the House of Representatives of the State of Arizona, the Senate concurring, prays:
1. That the Members of the United States Congress adopt H.R. 129, the Return to Prudent Banking Act of 2013, and S. 1282, the 21st Century Glass‑Steagall Act of 2013.
2. That the Members of the United States Congress and the President of the United States enact legislation that, in order to prevent American taxpayers from funding hundreds of billions of dollars to bail out financial institutions, would reinstate the separation of commercial and investment banking functions in effect under the Glass-Steagall Act by prohibiting commercial banks and bank holding companies from investing in stocks, underwriting securities or investing in or acting as guarantors to derivative transactions.
3. That the Secretary of State of the State of Arizona transmit a copy of this Memorial to the President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the Members of Congress from the State of Arizona, United
States Representatives Marcy Kaptur and Walter Jones and United States Senators Elizabeth Warren, Maria Cantwell, John McCain and Angus King.