Congress Receives Bush Proposal to Revamp Banking
The Bush Administration on Wednesday sent Congress a telephone book-sized bill overhauling the nation’s banking system but braced for a tough fight over elements of the plan.
The 317-page bill greatly details the proposed changes to U.S. banking law outlined in a Treasury Department study in February.
The bill would break down Depression-era barriers between banking and other businesses and give new investment powers to banks, while allowing industrial firms to own commercial banks. It would also allow banks to open branches nationwide.
A Treasury official said the bill would give consumers access to a wider range of services, bring new investment money to the capital-short banking industry and lead to fewer bank failures.
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