9/11 Bill May Get Consideration Before Elections Without Bankruptcy `Netting' Provision

WASHINGTON-The so-called `netting’ provision from bankruptcy reform legislation has been removed from the 9/11 Recommendations Implementation Act (H.R. 10), as CUNA wished. According to a letter that Democratic members of the House Financial Services Committee sent to Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), the bankruptcy bill remains intact after the Rules Committee stripped the netting provision from the 9/11 bill. The anti-terrorism legislation may yet be considered prior to the Nov. 2 elections. CUNA President and CEO Dan Mica had previously written House leaders that removing the netting provision from the bankruptcy reform legislation virtually crushes the chances of the overall bankruptcy abuse reform bill. “While we agree that the netting provisions are important, we object to the piecemeal approach that this effort represents and instead support their passage as part of the (bankruptcy) bill already passed twice this Congress by the House,” Mica wrote. The 28 Democrats quoted Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, who has supported the stability the netting provisions have to offer. They added, “We should not take the risk of continuing to wait to amend our insolvency laws to provide certainty to the financial markets.” The bankruptcy legislation has been mired down in the Senate by debate over a provision that would prevent those who convicted acts of violence against abortion clinics from seeking bankruptcy protection for related fines. CUNA and other bankruptcy reform supporters are using this leverage to try to push the entire bankruptcy abuse reform bill through. Additionally, the Internet gambling language has also been stripped from H.R. 10. According to CUNA, credit unions have seen a correlation between the increases in bankruptcy filings and Internet gaming. -