–House Financial Services Chief Says Talks Will Focus on ‘Few Issues’
–Need For 60 Senate Votes Will be a ‘Constraint’
–House-Senate Conference Committee Expected to Begin Week of June 7

By John Shaw

WASHINGTON (MNI) – House Financial Services Committee Chairman
Barney Frank told his House Democratic colleagues that he and other
senior members of congressional banking panels will “not be totally
autonomous” as they try to reconcile House and Senate versions of
financial regulatory reform.

A House-Senate conference committee on financial regulatory reform
is expected to begin the week of June 7.

In a memo this week to House Democratic members of his Financial
Services panel, Frank said the White House “feels strongly about this
and I expect that the House leadership will be engaged more than they
were last year when health care took up much of their time and when they
paid us the compliment of trusting us.”

The House passed its financial regulatory reform bill in December,
a time when the White House and congressional leaders were largely
focused on health care reform.

Frank said the greater involvement of the administration and the
Democratic leadership does not reflect badly on the members of his
committee.

“Their greater involvement will not imply a lack of trust, but
simply the fact that we are down to a few very important issues where
the administration will be strongly expressing its view,” Frank said.

Frank said that since any final agreement will probably require 60
votes to pass the Senate, this will serve as “something of a constraint”
during the negotiations.

In his memo, Frank outlines how he will approach the negotiations
and which members of his panel he believes should sit on the
House-Senate conference committee that will be charged to assemble a
final financial services regulatory overhaul bill.

Frank said that as the House-Senate conference begins he will meet
regularly with all House Democrats to tell them how the talks are
proceeding and seek their reaction to possible compromises.

Frank also said he has recommended to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
that eight House Democrats from the Financial Services Committee be
named to the conference committee, including the various subcommittee
chairs of the Financial Services panel.

The subcommittee chairs are Rep. Paul Kanjorski, of the Capital
Markets subcommittee; Rep. Melvin Watt, Domestic Monetary Policy; Rep.
Luis Gutierrez, Financial Institutions; Rep. Maxine Waters, Housing;
Rep. Greg Meeks, International Policy; and Rep. Dennis Moore, Oversight.

In addition, Frank has recommended Rep. Carolyn Maloney, a former
subcommittee chairman who is now chair of the Joint Economic Committee,
sit on the conference committee.

Pelosi also is expected to name several members of the House
Agriculture Committee to serve as conferees. A smaller group of House
Republicans will also be members.

House leaders are not expected to name their conferees until after
the Memorial Day recess.

This week, Senate leaders appointed seven Democrats and five
Republicans to the conference committee. The Democrats are Chris Dodd,
Jack Reed, Tim Johnson, Chuck Schumer, Patrick Leahy, Tom Harkin, and
Blanche Lincoln. The Republicans are Richard Shelby, Judd Gregg, Bob
Corker, Mike Crapo, and Saxby Chamblis.

Both Frank and Dodd, who will lead the conference committee, have
said they believe a final regulatory bill can be assembled quickly and
passed by July 4.

The have declined to get into the details of what kind of bill
might emerge at the end of the House-Senate conference committee.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **

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