Government Reform

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9) announced that several important consumer protection features of health reform are set to go into effect today, six months after the Affordable Care Act was signed into law by President Obama. Better known as the Patient’s Bill of Rights, these provisions seek to end insurance company abuses, and put consumers and their doctors back in control of their own care.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law (CAL), today chaired a hearing on “Federal Rulemaking and the Regulatory Process.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9) today issued the following statement after President Obama signed the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act into law. The measure will rebuild our economy by instituting common-sense rules to ensure big banks and Wall Street do not jeopardize the economic futures of working families.

Congressman Cohen said: “President Obama made history again today by signing this bill into law. Under this new law, big banks will no longer be able to gamble with our savings or economic futures.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Steve Cohen (D-TN-9) today voted to support the SPILL Act, legislation he cosponsored to reform maritime liability laws -- the Death on the High Seas Act, the Jones Act and the Limitation on Liability Act -- to ensure that the families of those killed or injured in the BP Oil Spill and other such tragedies are justly compensated for their losses.

“Because the Deepwater Horizon was flagged in the Marshall Islands, it was subject to limited safety examinations and minimal oversight, levels that pale in comparison to U.S. vessels. If the BP oil spill has taught us anything, it is that we cannot permit companies to cut corners at the expense of safety,” said Congressman Cohen. “My bill would ensure that only American flagged vessels, all of which meet the highest safety standards in the world, can conduct offshore drilling in U.S. waters.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Steve Cohen (D-TN-9), Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law (CAL), chaired a bipartisan hearing today that featured testimony from Supreme Court Associate Justices Stephen Breyer and Antonin Scalia. The Justices were there to discuss the Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) – a federal agency charged with improving administrative procedures. Paul Verkuil, the new ACUS Chairman, also appeared before the Subcommittee.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Steve Cohen (D-TN-9) is the new sponsor of Jane’s Law, a measure that was crafted to close a legal loophole that enables people to avoid paying court-ordered property distributions by crossing state lines. The measure was named after Jane Maharam, who has been fighting since 1983 to force her ex-husband to return her assets and obey court orders.