Another Overhaul

Senate Panel Approves New Finance Laws

Faster than expected.

Health care isn't the only sector facing a makeover this week. On Monday, the Senate Banking Committee passed legislation to overhaul the country's financial regulatory system, with a 13-10 vote along party lines. The approval came faster than committee Chairman Chris Dodd had initially suggested, in part because of the Obama administration's eagerness to "move the long-stalled process forward," The Washington Post reported. Among the provisions in the bill: a new bureau within the Federal Reserve to protect consumers and a council of regulators to review threats to the financial system. In his weekly address, President Obama endorsed the bill, saying: "We need common-sense rules that will allow our markets to function fairly and freely while reining in the worst practices of the financial industry."