After several pen strokes, and plenty of pomp, the Wall Street reform bill became law this afternoon. At signing ceremony at DC’s Ronald Reagan building, President Obama declared “These reforms represent the strongest consumer financial protections in history,” adding that “unless your business relies on cutting corners or bilking customers, you have nothing to fear from reform.”
Now the legislation must be implemented, which will be no small task. Some of the bills provisions are subject to years-long study by regulators before they become binding. Others are intentionally delayed for a variety of reasons. And still more simply take months to build up the capacity to enforce. At the White House yesterday, Deputy Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin told reporters he expects the newly-created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to be running autonomously within a year.
Before then, President Obama will have to decide who runs the new agency. That could touch off yet another White House clash with progressive activists, who have thrown the full weight of their support behind Elizabeth Warren. There’s no similar groundswell among the kingmakers on Capitol Hill.
Then there’s the uglier side of implementation: turf wars between regulators, and new openings for lobbyists hoping to influence and stymie the very people whose job it is to police them.
