Search

The shares of American Express fell 13 percent due to a shortfall in their earnings due to spending cut backs from their rich clients. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are the remaining source of mortgage liquidity and these companies are about to be helped by the housing bill passed by the House of Representatives.

The House and Senate Democrats adopted fiscal 2009 budget resolutions by a narrow margin, with spending bills exceeding President Bush's budget request. Facing a House-Senate conference and a possible presidential veto, they are likely to take further action on the bills only after the general elections when the next president takes office.

The House and Senate are set for a budget debate with both the House and Senate Budget Committees approving separate fiscal 2009 draft resolutions. Although both draft resolutions exceed President Bush's request for domestic spending, they differ on how the one-year 'patch' on the alternative minimum tax (AMT) will be paid.

Democratic appropriators in January 2007 kept their promise to finish the nine leftover fiscal 2007 appropriations bills in a single, yearlong continuing resolution. House Republicans complained about the substance of what they described as an omnibus bill, and the process, which did not allow them to offer any floor amendments, yet 57 of them voted for passage.

Sen. Tom George, R-Kalamazoo, surprised many last week when he proposed to grant a subsidiary of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan the right to sell automobile, life and other [...]

State House introduces film-industry stimulus bills A long-brewing package of incentives to boost Michigan filmmaking heads for committee this week. House Bills 5841-5856 are intended to give Michigan the most [...]

WASHINGTON - The economic stimulus package that President Bush and Congress are quickly rolling out should include programs that help both businesses and consumers, especially those with the lowest incomes, [...]

WHILE THE OVERNIGHT 'SLUMBER PARTY' in the Senate made headlines Tuesday night, a vote that night in the House on an amendment to the Department of Labor appropriations bill was [...]

The House late Wednesday approved legislation that would reform the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States. The bill is now headed to President Bush for his signature. It [...]

The House of Representatives has passed HR 698, legislation that is intended to prevent companies that receive more than 15% of their revenue from 'commercial activities' from owning a Utah [...]

WASHINGTON -- The House was expected to easily pass a bill late Monday that would bar commercial firms from owning industrial loan companies. But the bill, which also would put [...]

WASHINGTON -- Though the House is expected Tuesday to pass a bill to reform the regulation of the government-sponsored enterprises, the legislation's future is cloudier than ever. Lawmakers spent eight [...]

Heads are still shaking in bewilderment over the House's provision in the SAFE Port Act calling for 100 percent inspection of inbound ocean containers. Had they not been listening? Had [...]

The House is expected to vote today on a financial netting improvements bill sponsored by Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C. The bill would make technical corrections to the Federal Deposit Insurance [...]

Senate leaders began taking steps Thursday to unanimously approve the Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act. The House approved the bill, sponsored by Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, by a vote of [...]

Pension Reform HR 4 The Senate passed a pension reform bill by a vote of 93 to 5 on Aug. 3. The bill would increase a host of tax-free savings [...]

The House is expected to vote next week on legislation to halt the flow of funds to Internet gambling companies. After weeks of negotiating differences in competing bills introduced by [...]

WASHINGTON -- Critics are hoping a House hearing next week will pressure regulators to reject Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s effort to own an industrial loan company -- and lay the groundwork [...]

WASHINGTON -- The Senate Banking Committee is scheduled to vote on a regulatory-relief bill Thursday that appears aimed at avoiding controversial issues raised by similar House legislation. Absent from the [...]

The regulatory relief bill the House passed this month holds particular promise for federally chartered thrifts. The legislation aims to ease the compliance burden for community banks, thrifts, and credit [...]

Last week the House of Representatives passed the Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act by a vote of 415 to 2. The huge margin underscores the overwhelming bipartisan support in the [...]

WASHINGTON -- The House passed legislation 415 to 2 on Wednesday that would ease regulations for banks and thrifts, but it remains unclear if the bill can be enacted this [...]

The House is expected to consider a bill today to ease the regulatory burden on financial institutions. The Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act of 2005 is scheduled to go before [...]

WASHINGTON -- Fannie Mae faces yet another crossroad this week as the results of an investigation into the government-sponsored enterprise's accounting scandal are made public. Depending on what he found [...]

ACTION ON LEGISLATION Budget Reconciliation HR 4241, S 1932 President Bush signed legislation Wednesday that reduces federal spending by $40 billion over five years. Among other things, the law included [...]

WASHINGTON -- Banking industry officials who have pushed for deposit insurance reform for five-plus years might want to keep that champagne on ice until after the New Year. A procedural [...]

The House passed a bill last week to remove the cap on the number of reverse mortgages that the Department of Housing and Urban Development can insure. The Reverse Mortgage [...]

By the narrowest of margins, the House last week passed the funding bill that includes $636.8 million for Community Services Block Grants--the hard-fought level funding from last year's budget. The [...]

WASHINGTON -- A key House lawmaker said deposit insurance reform will be enacted this year while Senate sources are far less certain. Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., announced Tuesday evening that [...]

WASHINGTON -- Scrutiny of some crucial bank hedging instruments would intensify under a bill the House is scheduled to vote on Wednesday. In an effort to crack down on the [...]

WASHINGTON -- Congressional negotiators are close to a deal on deposit insurance reform -- and it is not expected to include some key industry priorities. Gone are provisions that would [...]

The House is scheduled to vote today on legislation to extend expiring tax cuts and the government's terrorism insurance program. The tax package contains $56.1 billion of cuts, including preserved [...]

WASHINGTON -- Though the holiday season is just starting, pundits are already declaring GSE reform legislation dead for 2006 -- unless of course something else dreadful happens at Fannie Mae [...]

WASHINGTON -- Time is running short for lawmakers to iron out significant differences between Senate and House approaches to terrorism insurance, deposit insurance, student loan guarantees, and tax-cut legislation. With [...]