Republican Moves To Block Creation Of 'Minority Office Of Inclusion' 

Wednesday, June 16, 2010 at 1:12PM
Staff in Brandon Kosters, Congress, Consumer Protection Act, Ed Royce, Maxine Waters, Minortiy Office oF Inclusions, News/Commentary, wall street reform

By Brandon Kosters-Talk Radio News Service

During a conference committee meeting on Wall Street reform Tuesday, Representatives Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and Ed Royce (R-Calif.) engaged in a heated debate over the Republican's proposal to remove a section of the bill authored by Waters aimed at establishing the "Minority Office of Inclusion" to assess the diversity policies and practices of banks and credit unions.

Royce said that Waters' language would further politicize credit allocation and divert regulator's attention away from "systemic risks [and] safety and soundness questions" toward "racial and gender lending" when inspecting banks and credit unions.

Waters said that the Office of Minority Inclusion would only offer assessments and would not hold an enforcement role.

Royce's amendment was rejected by a vote of 10 to 6.

Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) later proposed an amendment outlining that no action would necessarily be taken based upon the office's assessments. Corker's amendment was unanimously approved.

Article originally appeared on Talk Radio News Service: News, Politics, Media (http://www.talkradionews.com/).