U.S. House approves bill easing regulation on Wall Street

The House of U.S. Congress on Wednesday passed a Republican-backed bill that would ease regulation over banks and Wall Street.

The passage fell largely along party lines by a vote of 271-154. The bill would delay the implementation of a controversial provision in the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial law until 2019.

The law was supposed to tighten government oversights of banks and financial markets in order to prevent another crisis and taxpayer bailout of banks.

Approval of the bill came in the second week of the new Congress despite a veto threat from the White House. The measure now goes to the Senate for consideration where it is likely to pass despite strong opposition from the Democrats. Endi