Kanjorski: Agencies must act quickly on mark-to-market, or Congress will (Video)

Regulatory agencies will need to reform the so-called “mark-to-market” accounting practices for banks, or the Congress will move quickly to do it for them, Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.), the chairman of the relevant House Financial Services subcommittee said Thursday.

Kanjorski said the economy “shouldn’t even have to wait 15 weeks” for the government to reform the accounting rule preventing banks from unloading distressed assets more easily.

“This is the time to work, and the next quarter’s the time to change this rule and make the application of it more reasonable,” Kanjorski, chairman of the Capital Markets Subcommittee, said on CNBC Thursday morning. “We want to send a strong message that the regulators are creatures of the Congress. And in the best interest of everyone — including the investors — there has to be a modification of this rule.”

The lawmaker made clear, though, that if the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other regulatory agencies do not act quickly, the House would grudgingly step in to legislate the new rules.

“They should not take great time, because we have three bills pending in the House,” Kanjorski said. “We could move any one of the three, and they would have an effect. But they would also have a lasting effect on setting precedent that I’d rather not set.”

Critics allege that a relaxed mark-to-market rule would result in banks’ ability to inflate the value of assets in the future.

Watch a video of the appearance here: