Among those who didn't welcome that prospect was SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro, who told lawmakers in a March 13 letter that the measure would "weaken important protections" that separate analysts from investment bankers in the same firm, as well as rules that bar firms from promising potential clients favorable research in return for underwriting assignments.
Levin, one of the co-sponsors of an amendment that would have stripped the changes, cited the dot-com bubble in his floor remarks against the underlying bill, which was eventually passed in the Senate 73-26 and cleared by the House 380-41.
"This abuse helped feed a stock bubble that, when it burst, wiped out investors, evaporated companies and devastated the economy," Levin said on March 22. "It is astonishing that we would forget these lessons and allow the return of such blatant conflicts of interest."