Tag: Protecting Consumers, Taxpayers, and the Economy

Washington, DC – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement today after a federal judge struck down a Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) rule that would have limited speculation in the oil market.  “I’m outraged by today’s decision. During Wall Street reform, Congress passed a law to put aggressive

WASHINGTON – Today, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley, Senator Tom Udall (D-NM), and Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the Stopping Abuse and Fraud in Electronic (SAFE) Lending Act. The SAFE Lending Act would crack down on the worst practices of the online payday lending industry and give states more power to

Bend, OR – Senator Merkley was in Bend today to release a new report that reveals the extent to which federal funds have been used to employ foreign workers on Central Oregon forest projects. More than 50 percent of the Central Oregon forest health projects funded in 2010 utilized foreign

Washington, DC- Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement after today’s Senate Banking Committee hearing on JPMorgan’s trading losses. “While it wasn’t his intention, Jamie Dimon today made the case for a strong Volcker Rule. I was pleased to hear him say that he doesn’t want to be in

WASHINGTON –  Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley and Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) today sent a letter to regulators, calling on them to close the “JPMorgan Loophole.”  Although the Dodd-Frank Act prohibits banks from proprietary trading, the regulators’ proposed rule creates a new loophole that could allow proprietary trading to continue even

Washington, DC- Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley, cosponsor of the Merkley-Levin provision in Dodd-Frank that put into law the Volcker Rule, issued the following statement after news that J.P. Morgan lost at least $2 billion in portfolio hedging trades made by their risk management division.   “What yesterday’s announcement makes abundantly

Washington, DC – Today, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley and Carl Levin (D-MI) led a group of 22 Senators in calling on regulators to write and implement a strong Volcker Rule free of loopholes and draw clear lines between large hedge-fund like trading and traditional banking.  In a letter to Federal

Washington, DC– Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement after Republicans obstructed the Buffett Rule legislation from coming to the floor for debate.  “This evening, my Republican colleagues blocked debate of the Buffett Rule. That is outrageous. It is wrong that millionaires and billionaires are paying a lower tax

Portland, OR – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley today announced his intent to introduce federal payday legislation to establish strong rules for payday lenders and close loopholes on online and offshore payday lending sites. Today, Merkley also sent a letter to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray to call