WG/Strategies/Finanacial Regulation

Use the Discussion tab for this page to discuss proposed goals involving regulation of the financial industry. Place reference information on this topic here on the Page tab. To find another topic, return to main [Issues] page.

Proposals

(Numbers show the order in which they were added. Some proposals have been moved to the bottom or to another page.)

1. Break up the monopolies.The so-called "Too Big to Fail" financial companies – now sometimes called by the more accurate term "Systemically Dangerous Institutions" – are a direct threat to national security. They are above the law and above market consequence, making them more dangerous and unaccountable than a thousand mafias combined. There are about 20 such firms in America, and they need to be dismantled; a good start would be to repeal the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and mandate the separation of insurance companies, investment banks and commercial banks. - Matt Taibi in My Advice to the Occupy Wall Street Protesters,

2. Pay for your own bailouts. This proposal is moved to the bottom since there has been no support on its discussion thread.

3. No public money for private lobbying. This proposal is moved to End Corporate Personhood, where it fits better.

4. Tax hedge-fund gamblers. This proposal is moved to Tax Reform, where it fits better.

5. Change the way bankers get paid. We need new laws preventing Wall Street executives from getting bonuses upfront for deals that might blow up in all of our faces later. It should be: You make a deal today, you get company stock you can redeem two or three years from now. That forces everyone to be invested in his own company's long-term health – no more Joe Cassanos pocketing multimillion-dollar bonuses for destroying the AIGs of the world. - Matt Taibi in My Advice to the Occupy Wall Street Protesters,
In addition...

6. Audit FINRA. FINRA is a non-governmental entity tasked with minding the financial markets, and it's awful at it's job. It had Madoff and associates peppered throughout during the height of his Ponzi scheme and has a reputation for being too cozy with the private sector it's supposed to be monitoring. FINRA needs to be audited for practices and, if necessary, folded into the SEC for direct government oversight.

7. An army of accountants. America is willing to pony up a few billion to beef up our financial regulatory agencies with accountants. The SEC needs to have as many eyes, hands and calculators as necessary to perform their jobs.

8. Reinstate Glass-Steagall type legislation. Separate investment banking from commercial banking. This piggy backs of Proposal 1. Break up the monopolies. This issue need also address direct lending of financial institutions from the Federal Reserve discount window.

9. Pass campaign finance reform - Possible solutions: limiting contributions from corporations, accepting only small donor contributions, publicly funded elections, overturning citizens united

10. REPLACE THE PRIME INTEREST RATE SYSTEM fWITH THE LINKED INTEREST RATE SYSTEM

The interest rate for consumer credit, including mortgages and credit cards, shall not exceed 20% of the interest rate for consumer saving. Thus, a bank that offers savings accounts with 10% interest may charge 2% interest on its credit cards. A bank that offers savings accounts with 2% interest may charge .4% interest on its mortgages and credit cards. A lending institution that does not offer consumer savings accounts will use the same proportion to index its lending rate to the average national interest rate on consumer savings accounts.

 This will address the consumer credit crisis and encourage increased saving. Banks will gain through the increased savings and the increased ability of consumers to repay their loans.

11.  PROCLAIM A JUBILEE THROUGHOUT THE LAND All loans for which the combined monthly payments exceed one fifth of the lender's income shall be forgiven sufficiently to reduce the monthly payments to one fifth of the lender's income. All loans owed by people with income at or below 300% of the poverty level shall be forgiven sufficiently to reduce the lender's combined monthly payments to one tenth of the lender's income. This shall apply to mortgages, credit card loans, bank loans, student loans, and all other personal loans without exception; it shall apply as well to small businesses with ten or fewer employees. Lending institutions shall be eligible for tax credit for up to 75% of their losses through this program.

12. END DISCRIMINATION AGAINST THE UNEMPLOYED

 It shall become illegal for any organization to discriminate against the unemployed. Moreover, organizations hiring anyone who has been out of work for at least six months and shall be eligible for tax credits equal to the new employees first two months' paychecks plus any hiring bonus. Any company hiring individuals with income at or below 300% of the poverty level shall also be eligible for tax credits equal to any hiring bonus they pay to these new employees.

13. INCENTIVES TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN THE HIGHEST-PAID AND THE LOWEST-PAID

 Any company that ensures all its employees a living wage, based on the living expenses in the area where the employee lives, or where the company is located, whichever is higher, and taking into account the size of the employee's family, shall be eligible for a tax credit equal to two months of the salary of its lowest-paid employee. Any company that both guarantees a living wage to all employees and maintains a policy that the salary (including bonuses) of the highest-paid employee or CEO shall not exceed eight times that of the lowest-paid employee, shall be entitled to a tax credit equal to two weeks of the salary of the highest-paid employee.

14. PROMOTE THE AMERICAN DREAM

The government shall subsidize 50% of mortgages for low-income buyers by matching all mortgage payments by low-income lenders. In addition, the government shall make direct grants available to provide down payments and also to install systems for renewable energy systems, such as wind mills or solar panels. Mortgage subsidies and down payment grants shall be available to home buyers buying a home for personal residential use if their income does not exceed 400% of the poverty level for their area; renewable energy grants shall likewise be available to homeowners and homebuyers with income up to 400% of the poverty level, and partial subsidies shall be available to people whose income does not exceed the median income for that state. All home owners and home buyers shall be eligible for tax credits for renewable energy installations.

Serious Concerns

Please put most concerns and questions into the Discussion tab, and only summarize items here when they are clear, short and serious.

Unsupported proposals:

2. Pay for your own bailouts. A tax of 0.1 percent on all trades of stocks and bonds and a 0.01 percent tax on all trades of derivatives would generate enough revenue to pay us back for the bailouts, and still have plenty left over to fight the deficits the banks claim to be so worried about. It would also deter the endless chase for instant profits through computerized insider-trading schemes like High Frequency Trading, and force Wall Street to go back to the job it's supposed to be doing, i.e., making sober investments in job-creating businesses and watching them grow.
- Matt Taibi in My Advice to the Occupy Wall Street Protesters,

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Based on: SPP Finanacial Regulation at wikispaces