Feds, states reach mortgage deal with banks but many struggling homeowners still not covered

In Washington, the House of Representatives passed the STOCK Act today. The ethics reform legislation is designed to prevent members of Congress and their staff from using inside information about the financial market for their own personal profit. The bill passed 417 to 2—but Democrats criticized the Republican leadership for making last minute changes, including stripping a provision forcing political intelligence consultants to register as lobbyists. Progressive Caucus co-founder Keith Ellison said he hopes the bill moves to conference soon, where it could become more like the stronger version passed by the Senate:

ELLISON: We did pass a version of the STOCK Act today. It was a weakened version. It wasn’t good enough. If Americans across this country decided that they were going to demand that there be a conference committee in which the stronger provisions were adopted, I think that would be a very good thing.

Meanwhile, the US Justice Department and state attorneys general have finalized a more than $25 billion housing settlement with five of the country’s biggest financial institutions. But homeowner advocates are calling it just a drop in the bucket. FSRN's Alice Ollstein has the details on Capitol Hill.