The U.S. Senate rejected an amendment to financial-regulation legislation aimed at preventing taxpayer bailouts of state and local governments that have defaulted or are at risk of defaulting on debt.
Senator Judd Gregg’s proposal, which would have barred use of federal funds to purchase or guarantee debt or extend lines of credit to governments facing default, failed to win the 60 votes required for adoption.
“They shouldn’t expect the federal government to come in and take them out of their distress,” Senator Judd Gregg said before the vote. “There should be nothing that’s too big to fail in this country, including state governments,” said New Hampshire’s Gregg, the top Republican on the Budget Committee.
Full story: Senate Rejects Proposal to Prevent Bailouts of U.S. States – Bloomberg.com