Broker Regulation

With nine of the committee's 12 members selected, Washington began calculating whether the faltering economy and chaotic financial markets could spur the panel to produce a bipartisan plan trimming $1.5 trillion from the government's debt over the coming decade. Failure a real possibility, considering GOP opposition to tax increases...

The AARP and other retiree groups on Wednesday said they will argue before the Michigan Supreme Court that parts of the state's new tax on pensions are unconstitutional, particularly related to public employees.

Rattled by all the chaos and unpredictability in the markets? Get used to it. Predictions from global professional services company Towers Watson say dramatic financial developments over the past week or so like S&Ps downgrade are likely to keep happening for a number of years.

At the heart of the bitter dispute over funding the Federal Aviation Administration is an ongoing brawl between Republicans and Democrats over the rights of labor unions, one of several that have flared up during the Obama administration.

The Federal Reserve sketched a dim outlook for the economy Tuesday, suggesting it will remain weak for two more years. As a result, the Fed said it expects to keep its key interest rate near zero through mid-2013.

Some state legislators say they have “grave concerns” about the long-term sustainability of the controversial CLASS Act.