Christopher Dodd

Mr. DODD

Mr. DODD. Madam President, I further ask unanimous consent--I am looking at my friend from Arizona--that after the remarks of the Senator from Hawaii, the Senator from Arizona be recognized.

Mr. DODD. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent the call of the quorum be rescinded.

Mr. DODD

Mr. DODD. I would be happy to yield for a question.

Mr. DODD. The Senator from Alaska is correct. The SEC certainly has existing authority to add State and local governments to the definitions of ``accredited investor'' and ``qualified institutional buyer'' under its Securities Act rules.

Mr. DODD. I would be happy to yield for a question.

Mr. DODD. I believe it would be appropriate for the SEC to take the opportunity presented by the rulemakings under this legislation, to consider whether to include State and local government bodies within those definitions. credit sales

Mr. DODD. I believe point of the Senator from Maine is well taken. Wholesalers and manufacturers do not provide any products to consumers for their personal, family, or household use, let alone consumer financial products or services. Thus, wholesalers' and manufacturers' sales of nonfinancial goods to other businesses would be outside the bureau's jurisdiction.

Mr. DODD. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote, and I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DODD. Madam President, in response to my colleague, I thank him. He was been very active in the debate on this bill. I am grateful for his thoughts and ideas. This is a very important proposal--one that we have not adopted. It is in the House bill. I told my friend I would be anxious to pursue the idea he has incorporated because, obviously, this is subject matter that has probably evoked more public interest almost more than any other aspect of the crisis over the last 2 years. Obviously, people have lost homes and jobs and retirement income and the economic damage done to the country; but people seemed to understand this issue from the very beginning more than almost anything else, particularly in light of the fact that taxpayers were writing the check of $700 billion to stabilize, we are told, and preserve many of these institutions. What was degrading to many people is, in the midst of all that, we watched some executives take excessive bonuses who could only receive them because the American taxpayer stabilized and preserved those companies as a result of that legislation. What also bothered me beyond that, I might have thought at some particular point the executives might have expressed their appreciation to the American taxpayers for stabilizing and saving some of these institutions. They not only didn't do that, in most instances they went out and took significant bonuses that were only available because the companies had been saved by the American taxpayer. So this issue is one that I think had more to do with inflaming public passions about what happened almost more than anything else I can think of. Our colleague from Rhode Island has crafted a proposal that would go to deal with this issue. I applaud him for that. I hope we can work something out that will meet his concerns. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, it is my understanding that one of the reasons for providing the Federal Reserve Board, and, eventually, the bureau, with authority to provide exemptions under paragraph (7) of this new section 129(l) of the Truth in Lending Act, is to allow the regulator to make adjustments to the points and fees cap with respect to smaller loans. I further understand that it is not the intent of the new section 129(l) to cover a streamline refinancing as provided by government programs such as FHA, and that the Board/bureau will establish appropriate guidelines for exemption. Is this view correct?

Mr. DODD. I thank the Senator very much. I agree with the Senator.

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, pursuant to section 904 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, I move to waive the applicable sections of that act for purposes of the pending amendment. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. DODD. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DODD. Reserving the right to object, I want to be heard on the matter.

Mr. DODD. First of all, the Budget Committee, like all authorizing committees, has the option, at the outset, when the budget resolution is considered, to set aside a reserve fund in anticipation of some piece of legislation coming along that may cost more. We did not do that. We did not know what that would be. That is what we are talking about. If we had spent $1, since we had zero in terms of a budget allocation for our committee, $1 over it would have provoked a potential budget point of order. So the fact that the committee has spent money in this bill on a major restructuring of our financial structures of the Nation should not come as any great surprise. But, secondly, it is somewhat ironic the only reason we find ourselves at the point of $19.7 billion over is because--at the request, I might point out, of my good friends on the minority side--we eliminated the upfront prepayment cost of the $50 billion we had in the bill. Many believed the optics of that just did not look good so we took that money out, as you recall, in the Shelby-Dodd amendment, one of the first amendments we considered. Had that money stayed in, of course we would not be talking about any deficit at all in this bill. The fact is, of course, that post payments coming out of creditors, coming out of the industry itself, and the fact the bankrupt company does not have the assets, then it will be paid for. I say to my colleagues respectfully here, it is a very technical amendment dealing primarily with 302. It has to do with the allocations given to committees. Had we been $1 over, we would have been subjected to this point of order. But we have not. But on that basis, theoretically we ought to be waiving. Pursuant to section 904 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, I move to waive the applicable sections of that act for purposes of the pending amendment. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. DODD. Was a point of order made?

Mr. DODD

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to a period of morning business, with Senators allowed to speak for up to 10 minutes.

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DODD

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a committee intern, Robert Courtney, be granted the privilege of the floor for the duration of today's session.

Mr. DODD

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DODD

Mr. DODD. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.