Senate passes bill that eases Dodd-Frank rules for banks

The Senate on Wednesday voted 67-31 for a bill that would ease some rules on banks that were enacted after the 2008 financial crisis.

Dodd-Frank was signed into law in 2010, put into place to prevent another financial meltdown, and liberal Democrats argued that the new bill, sponsored by Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), increases the likelihood of another financial catastrophe. Under the bill, banks with less than $10 billion in assets would be exempt from a rule that bans institutions from stock trading for their own profit and the largest banks would no longer have to undergo a yearly stress test conducted by the Federal Reserve. There are also some consumer protections, including offering free credit monitoring to active-duty military members.

Crapo said the bill was "designed to protect community banks and credit unions, and that's why we have such bipartisan support for it." It's unclear how the bill will hold up in the House, but President Trump has said he will sign it.

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