Two weeks after finally getting through the House of Representatives in a heavily edited form, the financial reform bill was passed by the Senate earlier today by a vote of 60-39.

The bill, which only required a simple majority to pass through the Senate, the 60 votes was needed to short-circuit any hope of a filibuster by the opposition.

The bill did get support from three Republicans — Scott Brown of Massachusetts and Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, both of Maine — who crossed the aisle to give their votes for the measure, which is now expected to be quickly signed into law by President Obama.

From the L.A. Times:

The bill creates a bureau within the Federal Reserve to protect consumers in the financial marketplace, establishes a council of regulators to monitor the financial system for major risks, imposes tough regulations on complex financial derivatives, grants shareholders a nonbinding vote on executive compensation and gives the government authority to seize and dismantle teetering firms whose failure would pose a danger to the economy.

While supporters of the bill say it will prevent the kind of tomfoolery that caused the recent economic meltdown, those opposed claim it will only cause more problems by increasing the government’s involvement in the financial industry.

Senate passes sweeping financial overhaul legislation [L.A. Times]

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