Today, CFA sent a letter to Nancy Pelosi urging her to allow taxpayers at least 72 hours to scrunitize the final version of the Financial Regulatory Reform bill before scheduling a vote. Since the bill will put taxpayers on the hook for billions of dollars, they deserve the chance to be able to read the entirely of the bill before it is brought to a vote. Leaders in Congress should not be allowed to pick and choose which bills should be subjected to a waiting period–taxpayers must have the opportunity to review all bills for at least 72 hours before a vote is scheduled. From our letter:
The bill makes sweeping changes to the financial market, and taxpayers, who will be directly affected by these new regulations, deserve the opportunity to read the bill before it is brought to a vote. The legislation sets the stage for further intervention into the financial market, putting taxpayers on the hook once again for capricious bailouts of private industry.
The conference committee reassembled last night to cobble together a more politically palatable version of the bill. Taxpayers should be given the opportunity to see what these new changes are – especially if they are made at the eleventh hour to seal votes for the package as a whole.
Click here to read our entire letter.
This post originally appeared at www.fiscalaccountability.org.