Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) recently wrote an Op-Ed for the Denver Post about changes in credit card terms and the need for more financial regulation to effectively protect consumers.  He talks about the improvements that are about to go into effect, and says:

These long-overdue reforms also serve as a reminder that Congress needs to finish the job when it comes to cleaning up the way Wall Street does business. Consumers still lack adequate protections, whether they’re purchasing a home or paying with a debit card. At the same time, many of the same dangerous trends that forced taxpayers to rescue Wall Street still exist today.

At the outset, taxpayers should never again be forced to prop up companies that are “too big to fail.” A new resolution authority will ensure that large financial firms can be properly closed down, similar to the way that the FDIC can close and sell off the remaining assets of a failed bank.

Resolution authority will help prevent another AIG or GMAC, which have become permanent wards of the state. It can also reduce excessive risk-taking because management will know that it won’t be able to depend on another government bailout.

Similarly, the largest and most interconnected financial firms must have greater capital requirements and restrictions on excess debt. These steps will help prevent future bailouts of companies that are “too big to fail.”