BMRC Proposed Platform Amendment to Part IV of Platform – # 1
The proposal was presented to our committee membership for discussion in accordance with the rules of BMRC pertaining to formal decision-making by the committee, and passed by consensus at midnight on September 7, 2019.
Banking and Monetary Reform Committee (BMRC)
Co-chairs: Howard Switzer, hmsarchitecture@gmail.com and Mary Sanderson mhsanderson@hotmail.com
Designated contact person: Rita Jacobs, rjacobs@arq.net
Chapter IV, Letter I. Banking and Insurance Reform
Amended text to then be removed from Letter I. and placed in a new lettered Section N. in Chapter IV entitled Monetary Reform (Greening the Dollar) A Green Public Money Future, which would be inserted after Letter M. National Debt, unless other platform amendments change the present Lettered sections Under Part IV. This would also require removing the present numbered items 15, 16, and 17, under Letter I. and renumbering the remaining items 18-27 as numbers 15 – 24. This would not alter any other present content of Chapter IV.
Current language in Part IV, Section I. under subheading Monetary Reform (Greening the Dollar) including an introduction and paragraphs 15, 16, and 17:
The crisis in our financial system makes it imperative that we restructure our monetary system. The present system of privatized control has resulted in the misdirection of our resources to speculation, toxic loans, and phony financial instruments that create huge profits for the few but no real wealth or jobs. It is both possible and necessary for our government to take back its special money creation privilege and spend this money into circulation through a carefully controlled policy of directing funds, through community banks and interest-free loans, to local and state government entities to be used for infrastructure, health, education, and the arts This would add millions of good jobs, enrich our communities, and go a long way toward ending the current deep recession.
To reverse the privatization of control over the money issuing process of our nation’s monetary system; to reverse its resulting obscene and undeserved concentration of wealth and income; to place it within a more equitable public system of governmental checks and balances; and to end the regular recurrence of severe and disruptive banking crises such as the ongoing financial crisis which threatens the livelihood of millions; the Green Party supports the following interconnected solutions:
15. Nationalize the 12 Federal Reserve Banks, reconstituting them and the Federal Reserve Systems Washington Board of Governors under a new Monetary Authority Board within the U.S. Treasury. The private creation of money or credit which substitutes for money, will cease and with it the reckless and fraudulent practices that have led to the present financial and economic crisis.
16. The Monetary Authority, with assistance from the FDIC, the SEC, the U.S. Treasury, the Congressional Budget Office, and others will redefine bank lending rules and procedures to end the privilege banks now have to create money when they extend their credit, by ending what’s known as the fractional reserve system in an elegant, non disruptive manner. Banks will be encouraged to continue as profit making companies, extending loans of real money at interest; acting as intermediaries be- tween those clients seeking a return on their savings and those clients ready and able to pay for borrowing the money; but banks will no longer be creators of what we are using for money.
17. The new money that must be regularly added to an improving system as population and commerce grow will be created and spent into circulation by the U. S. Government for infrastructure, including the “human infrastructure” of education and health care. This begins with the $2.2 trillion the American Society of Civil Engineers warns us is needed to bring existing infrastructure to safe levels over the next 5 years. Per capita guidelines will assure a fair distribution of such expenditures across the United States, creating good jobs, re-invigorating the local economies and re-funding government at all levels. As this money is paid out to various contractors, they in turn pay their suppliers and laborers who in turn pay for their living expenses and ultimately this money gets deposited into banks, which are then in a position to make loans of this money, according to the new regulations.
Proposed amended language to placed in new lettered Section under Part IV:
Monetary Reform (Greening the Dollar)
A Green Public Money Future
The crisis in our financial system makes it imperative that we restructure our monetary system. The present system of privatized money issuance and control has resulted in the misdirection of our financial resources to speculation, toxic financial instruments, and loans that create huge profits and wealth for the corporate few, but inadequate income and jobs for the common people.
It is both possible and necessary for Congress to take back its exclusive Constitutional power to create our money (Article1 Section 8) without the creation of debt, and assume the responsibility to spend this money directly into circulation to fund public benefits outlined in the Federal Budget. Only with a Public Money System can the government direct our national wealth to the needs of the people through their local and state governments. A Public Money System will enable millions of good livelihoods, provide sufficient incomes, shrink the debt burden and begin to close the wealth gap. Public money has not been issued since Greenbacks, introduced by President Lincoln in 1862, and circulating as public money until 1971.
To reverse the private control of issuing our nation’s money; to reverse the immoral and undeserved concentration of national wealth and income resulting from that private control; to place control over money within a more equitable public system of governmental checks and balances; and to end the regular recurrence of severe and disruptive financial crises that mark the Booms and Busts cycles of capitalism – the Green Party proposes the following three Public Money solutions to be enacted together:
1. Nationalize the 12 Federal Reserve Banks and transfer administrative functions of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors to a Bureau of the U.S. Treasury. All money created under the nationalized Federal Reserve System will be treated as publicly issued money. The private creation of money will cease and with it the reckless practices that have led to recurring economic crises.
2. All new money will be issued as a debt-free, permanently circulating asset by the federal government. A new Public Monetary Authority will be established under the Department of Treasury to scientifically determine the amount of money that can be safely created for the national economy to avoid inflation or deflation. The Monetary Authority will be empowered with full autonomy and independence to avoid political influence. Although banks will continue as financial intermediaries, lending publicly-issued money at interest, and performing traditional banking functions they will no longer be allowed to create money, ending what is known as fractional reserve banking. Specific guidance for a progressive publicly-controlled Monetary Authority can be found in a bill already entered into the U.S. Congress: H.R. 2990 — 112th Congress: National Emergency Employment Defense Act of 2011 (NEED Act).
3. All new money will be spent into circulation by the U.S. Government as authorized by Congress for public purpose. This includes funding a 21st century infrastructure including education and health care. Per capita spending guidelines for new money will assure a fair distribution across the nation, creating good livelihoods, re-invigorating local economies and funding government at all levels. Newly-created money will also be distributed directly to state and local governments.
Comments:
Reason for requesting this amendment: Monetary reform is a very important part of our platform and should be in a separate lettered section of Part IV of the platform. It is presently in Section I. Banking and Insurance Reform. It appears to have been haphazardly placed in that section with a subheading of Monetary Reform (Greening the Dollar) added after the paragraphs on banking reforms and before the subheading of Insurance Reform. Monetary reform goes much beyond banking reforms, as it involves changing the way money is created and initially distributed into the economy. We currently have a debt-based system that allows private banks to create nearly all new money by creating debt. This has led to the current debt level that has affected not only the National Debt, but also the personal debt of many Americans. We are at a crisis level that requires a completely revised system of money creation. The original wording of the present subsection on Monetary Reform has also been revised to provide greater clarity to advance understanding of monetary issues.