Senate News

Investors Suing Banks Gain Ammunition with Senate Report

Pigs. Unicorns. Money? A scathing U.S. Senate panel report faulting Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Deutsche Bank AG and others for contributing to the financial crisis may provide ammunition for investor lawsuits accusing the banks of putting their own interests ahead …

Credit Raters Triggered Financial Crisis, Says Senate Report

Moody’s Corp. and Standard and Poor’s triggered the worst financial crisis in decades when they were forced to downgrade the inflated ratings they slapped on complex mortgage-backed securities, a U.S. congressional report concluded on Wednesday. In one of the most …

Senate Passes Patent Reform, 95-5

The U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly to overhaul U.S. patent laws, backing a measure aimed at chipping away at a huge backlog of patent applications and offering cheaper alternatives to litigation. In a 95-5 vote, the Senate approved on Tuesday the …

Senate Amends Patent Reform Bill, Vote Could Come This Week

The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to strip controversial provisions out of a bipartisan bill to revamp the U.S. patent system and clear a years long backlog of patent applications. The vote was 97 in favor and two opposed. Senators Patrick …

Regulators Face Senate Panel Over Dodd-Frank Regulations Today

Republicans will escalate their push to delay and defund the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reforms on Thursday as top regulators appear before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee with a new chairman presiding. Replacing Christopher Dodd, Democrat Tim Johnson will lead his …

Florida Senate Looking to Expand Commercial Deregulation

The Florida Senate and Banking Insurance Committee has approved a bill that would deregulate a variety of commercial lines of insurance by allowing insurers to offer the coverage without first obtaining the Office of Insurance Regulation’s approval for its rates. …

Senate Democrats Block Repeal of Healthcare Law

President Barack Obama’s fellow Democrats in the U.S. Senate blocked a Republican bid Wednesday to repeal his healthcare overhaul, likely leaving the fate of the year-old law up to the federal courts. The Senate rejected the attempted repeal on a …

Senate Republicans Press for Vote to Repeal Healthcare Law

Republicans moved Tuesday to force a U.S. Senate vote to repeal President Barack Obama’s healthcare overhaul — a day after a federal judge ruled that the law was unconstitutional. Obama’s fellow Democrats in the Senate were expected to block the …

Florida Lawmakers Seek Ways to Curb Sinkhole Losses

Florida lawmakers are trying to address the cost of sinkhole claims, which state officials and insurers say are driving up property insurance rates and could threaten the solvency of some domestic insurers if not brought under control. The Senate Banking …