House GOP on track to undoing post-2008 financial rules

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans headed toward a vote Thursday on dismantling sweeping financial rules established under President Barack Obama that were designed to head off economic meltdowns like the one that caused millions of Americans to lose their jobs and homes during the Great Recession.

The agency has returned $29 billion to 12 million consumers who were victims of deceptive marketing, discriminatory lending or other financial wrongdoing.

The bill also repeals a prohibition knows as the Volcker Rule that bans banks from engaging in propriety trading or forming certain relationships with private equity funds.

In a report on regulatory reform, the Federal Reserve described the U.S. banking system as much more robust and resilient than it was before the financial crisis.

Sen. Mike Crapo, the Republican chairman of Senate panel with jurisdiction over banks, said lawmakers have requested ideas on how to improve the economy from all stakeholders and that "Dodd-Frank is clearly a part of that."