–House Majority Leader Hedges On Hill Consideration of Reg Bill This Wk
–Rep. Hoyer: House To Pass Reg Reform Bill ‘Relatively Soon’
–Dodd Working ‘Very Very Hard’ To Secure 60 Senate Votes
–House Will Pass Unemployment Extension This Week

By John Shaw

WASHINGTON (MNI) – In a clear indication that Democratic leaders
are scrambling to line up the votes to pass the regulatory reform
conference report, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said Tuesday that
he expects the House to take up the sweeping package “relatively soon.”

At a briefing, Hoyer repeatedly hedged on whether the bill would be
taken up this week, a clear retreat from previously stated plans to have
the House consider the bill as early as today.

Hoyer said Democrats “hoped to act this week” on the regulatory
reform bill. This, he said, was his “expectation.”

Hoyer made it very clear that the largest impediment to prompt
action is the concern that there are not the requisite 60 votes in the
Senate.

Hoyer said Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd is working
“very, very hard” to “make sure he has 60 votes.”

Hoyer said that “discussions are ongoing” between House and Senate
Democrats on the status of the bill.

Senate Democrats are trying to deal with reservations of key Senate
Republicans regarding a $22 billion package of offsets to pay for the
cost of the bill over a decade as estimated by the Congressional Budget
Office.

Under the plan, about $19 billion over five years would be raised
through assessments on large financial institutions and hedge funds.
Firms with assets of $50 billion or more and hedge funds managing assets
over $10 billion would have to pay into the fund.

The funding package has been cited by several Senate Republican
senators as the reason they are reassessing their support for the final
bill.

Dodd has said he expects to need 60 votes to pass the measure in
the Senate and has been in contact with four Senate Republicans who
supported the first Senate version of the bill.

While the final bill will only require a majority vote in the House
and Senate to pass, Senate supporters will have to secure 60 votes to
cut off the debate in the Senate.

The House-Senate conference committee approved Friday legislation
which would make the most sweeping changes to the U.S. regulatory system
since the Great Depression.

On other matters, Hoyer said that passing an extension of
unemployment insurance is “critical” for the security of unemployed
people and for the strength of the economic recovery.

“We are going to move on a UI bill” this week, Hoyer said, but
declined to say if it would be considered as part of larger package or
as a stand-alone bill.

Finally, Hoyer said the House will take up this week an emergency
spending bill which funds the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and a host of
domestic needs.

House Democratic leaders are trying to determine when and how they
should pass an $84 billion emergency spending bill, which includes $33
billion for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and $23 billion to prevent
a wave of teacher layoffs.

The Senate approved a $59 billion emergency bill last month which
did not have the teacher funding.

“I expect the supplemental to move in the next couple of days,
certainly by Friday,” Hoyer said.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **

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