Citizens call on Senators for Banking Reform

WV Labor and Civic Groups Ask Senators to
Support Bi-Partisan “21st Century Glass-Steagall Act”
Deliver over 2700 WV Petitions to Local Offices

July 10th, 2014

Charleston, WV – Support for the updated Glass-Steagall Act was the message of petitions delivered to Senator Manchin and Rockefeller this week supported by WV AFL-CIO; WV Center on Budget & Policy and WV Citizen Action. The petitions, which called for federal action on the 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act, were part of a national delivery bearing more than 600,000 signatures, including over 2700 citizens of West Virginia.

This bipartisan bill, introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) along with Senators John McCain (R-Ariz.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), and Angus King (I-Maine) would address the problem of Wall Street banks that have become too complicated, conflicted, and powerful, as well as simply too big. Their legislation restores the traditional principle of the original 1930s Glass-Steagall law while adding new protections to update it for 21st century financial markets.

“For some sixty years the U.S. had a stable financial system – and one focused more on serving the economy and the society as a whole – thanks in part to the Glass-Steagall firewall between commercial banking and the casino world of trading and speculation,” says Gary Zuckett, Executive Director of WV Citizen Action Group, “Citizen Action supports this legislation which would make our financial system safer and refocus banks on making sustainable loans to homeowners and businesses.”

The petitions were gathered by Credo, Public Citizen, Americans for Financial Reform, Dr. Mitchell Gershten, and MoveOn.org in addition to local organizations.

Zuckett added, “We urge Senators Rockefeller and Manchin to support this important legislation that will make our financial system more secure and better able to support the Middle Class, which is the real engine of our economy.”

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