Responding to criticism about the power and scope of a proposed consumer financial protection agency, Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) says that he intends to exempt certain non-financial businesses from oversight by the new agency, Brady Dennis reports.

"That means that merchants and retailers can continue to give their customers tabs and layaway plans without becoming subject to a new layer of regulation," Frank wrote to members of the House Financial Services Committee, which he leads. Doctors and other businesses that bill customers after a service is provided, including telephone and cable companies, also will be excluded, as will auto dealers, lawyers, providers of certain retirement and pension plans, accountants, and real estate brokers.

More compromise may be necessary to sway skeptics in the business community. "We are pleased that a number of the issues we raised have been addressed," says Edward L. Yingling, president of the American Bankers Association. "At the same time, there are some very significant issues that still need to be addressed."

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