Obama and congressional Democrats have vowed to overhaul financial regulations by the end of the year. They say had regulations been tighter in recent years, firms would not have taken many of the risky bets that ultimately put them in danger of collapsing and in need of a $700 billion government bailout.

Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., and chairman of the Banking Committee, said in an interview Thursday that he remains committed to tightening industry rules this year. But he also acknowledged that the work load is daunting for a Congress still trying to get its arms around the financial crisis.

On Wednesday, the Senate voted to create both a congressional panel and a $5 million independent commission to investigate the economic meltdown in the next 18 months. Meanwhile, Congress is advancing legislation that would ban certain practices by credit card companies, target predatory lending and prosecute mortgage fraud.

“We’ve got a lot on our plate,” said Dodd.

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