It’s been a great week for big banks and corporate giants -- and a bad week for consumers and ordinary citizens everywhere.

The U.S. House passed a bill that cuts into the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and here in Illinois, Attorney General Lisa Madigan was named one of the main negotiators working with big banks for immunity in civil courts over foreclosure law suits.

In a partisan vote Thursday, the U.S. House passed the so-called “Consumer Financial Protection Safety and Soundness Improvement Act,” or HR 1315, by a vote of 241 to 173. All but one Republican supported it and 10 Democrats also signed on. The new bill gives the Financial Stability Oversight Council -- made up of federal banking and financial regulators -- the power to veto CFPB regulations with a simple majority vote and creates a five-member board to serve as the head.

The CFPB was created with the task of regulating reforms set in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. HR 1315 was passed on the day CFPB opened and on the one-year anniversary of the Frank-Dodd Act. Illinois PIRG director Brian Imus slammed the “crippling” HB 1315, saying “Members who supported HR 1315 [...] voted to protect Wall Street banks from oversight at the expense of their own constituents, ordinary consumers.”

Meanwhile, there’s been buzz about how all 50 state attorneys general are negotiating with big banks to protect them from civil lawsuits over foreclosures in exchange for billions in penalties. According to a Reuters report, Illinois’ very own AG Lisa Madigan, along with the AG from Iowa and Connecticut, will serve as the chief negotiators with Bank of America, Wells Fargo, CitiGroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Ally Financial. The banks would pony up $25 billion in penalties and commit to “follow new rules” if they are given immunity from civil lawsuits by the states, and the justice and housing departments.

Progress Illinois reached out to Madigan’s office to confirm her position in the talks, but a spokeswoman said they will not comment on anything related to the Reuters report.