Congressional Hearings |
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Statement of Mike Crapo
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
"Consideration of Regulatory Reform Proposals"
June, 22 2004
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Thank you Mr. Chairman for holding this hearing on “Consideration of
Regulatory Reform Proposals”.
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Eliminating outdated, ineffective, or unduly burdensome regulations
that are not justified by either the need to ensure safety and
soundness or to provide consumer protection is a critical and persistent
issue with the Banking Committee and the Congress. When regulatory
burdens are excessive and fail to add net value, they take a toll on the
competitiveness of our financial system and squander scarce resources that
could otherwise be devoted to productive activities, such as making
loans and extending credit to small businesses and potential homeowners.
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The sheer volume of regulatory requirements facing the financial services
industry today presents a daunting task for any institution. Although
there are no definitive studies of the total cost of regulation, it is
estimated that the banking industry spends somewhere in the
neighborhood of $26 billion to $40 billion annually to comply with
regulatory requirements.
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As we proceed, we need to make sure that we enact enough meaningful
reforms so that the cost of change isn’t a burden in and of itself. The
specific recommendations of the witnesses today will be of great use to
me and other members of the Senate Banking Committee as we create
legislation to address the important issues of financial services
regulatory reform.
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While finding a consensus on these issues may be difficult, I look forward
to working with you and my colleagues on this Committee to being the
process of taking up regulatory relief in the Banking Committee. Thank you
all for appearing here today, and I look forward to your testimony
and the question period.
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