Morton: Real Reform Bill Will Restore Americans' Confidence

Opinion By: John E. Morton Read time:
Morton: Real Reform Bill Will Restore Americans' Confidence

Two years after the start of the crash, Americans are still coping with the fallout from the most significant financial crisis since the Great Depression. Millions of people are still out of work. Many others are in danger of losing their homes or have had to deplete their retirement savings to stay afloat. At the same time, the crisis has produced another casualty, less tangible perhaps, but nonetheless profound: a loss of confidence in our economy and in the ability of our nation's leaders to get it back on track.

The damage from the old system that imploded in the autumn of 2008 was tremendous: A recent Pew Financial Reform Project report estimated that the cost of the financial crisis to American workers and families was close to $650 billion in wages, corporate profits, interest and other income, from September 2008 through 2009 alone. But there is opportunity in the face of all this adversity.

After the crisis hit, the American people demanded financial reform, and Congress acted, holding more than 100 hearings and engaging in a vigorous debate. As lawmakers hammer out the final details of major financial reform legislation, we have the chance to create a better financial system, one strong enough to prevent future meltdowns. Both the House and Senate have approved legislation with significant new safeguards. And after several painstaking weeks, a conference committee worked into the early morning hours to approve a compromise that completes this work.

The full Congress is now preparing a vote on a final bill, which at a minimum should achieve the following goals: create a strong early warning system by standardizing, collecting, analyzing and reporting data on the stability of the financial system as a whole; address “too big to fail” by requiring systemically important financial institutions to maintain regulator-approved “living wills” that will resolve failures at no cost to taxpayers and ensure careful and continuous monitoring of the new law.

Lawmakers must not allow election-year politics to weaken this vital legislation. They — and we — should remain vigilant even after President Barack Obama signs it. The new law won't be meaningful unless the regulatory agencies charged with implementing it act vigorously in the months and years ahead to enforce it.

Congress is working to meet the challenges of passing real reform. In time, our confidence will be renewed and we will all move toward a brighter, smarter and more stable economic future. We deserve nothing less.

Pew is no longer active in this line of work, but for more information, visit the main Pew Financial Reform page.

America’s Overdose Crisis
America’s Overdose Crisis

America’s Overdose Crisis

Sign up for our five-email course explaining the overdose crisis in America, the state of treatment access, and ways to improve care

Sign up
Quick View
America’s Overdose Crisis

America’s Overdose Crisis

Sign up for our five-email course explaining the overdose crisis in America, the state of treatment access, and ways to improve care

Sign up

MORE FROM PEW

An aerial view of a vast wetland, with scattered vegetation visible on sandy islands. In Western Australia, a Conservation Model for the World
A presentation being given by a businesswoman to a group of participants at a business conference. Four Plan Features Can Boost 'Retirement Readiness'
A large group of people in formal or traditional attire stands together on a stage, with a digital background depicting marine life and the large text “WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies.” WTO Needs to Redouble Its Effort on Fishing Subsidies
A man in a winter hat and sunglasses kneels on a rocky shoreline in front of a campfire, holding a metal mug with gloved hands. Behind him, in the water, a motorboat is moored to the shore. Cliffs rise on both sides of the water. Why Newfoundland’s South Coast Fjords Are Sacred
Composite image of modern city network communication concept

Learn the Basics of Broadband from Our Limited Series

Sign up for our four-week email course on Broadband Basics
Quick View

How does broadband internet reach our homes, phones, and tablets? What kind of infrastructure connects us all together? What are the major barriers to broadband access for American communities?

Pills illustration
Pills illustration

What Is Antibiotic Resistance—and How Can We Fight It?

Sign up for our four-week email series The Race Against Resistance.
Quick View
Pills illustration

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria, also known as “superbugs,” are a major threat to modern medicine. But how does resistance work, and what can we do to slow the spread? Read personal stories, expert accounts, and more for the answers to those questions in our four-week email series: Slowing Superbugs.