Press Releases

WEEK IN REVIEW


 

Washington, May 27, 2016 -

Task Force Evaluates Federal Commitment to Combat Terror Financing

The Task Force to Investigate Terror Financing called two Treasury Department officials to testify at a hearing on Tuesday. 

Members of the Task Force agreed coordination among government agencies is necessary to combat terror financing and expressed alarm that the federal government does not maintain a single strategic document or inter-agency implementation plan for combating the financing of terrorism.

“This Task Force continues to note that illicit actors are adaptive, constantly evolving their money laundering and financing techniques to better avoid detection. These techniques and practices, such as trade-based money laundering or the narcotics trade, often cross the jurisdictions of several different U.S. government agencies, making communication, coordination and information sharing among agency personnel paramount,” said Task Force Chairman Michael Fitzpatrick (R-PA).

Member Spotlight

Rep. Bill Huizenga | IMF Seeks to Keep Wiggle Room While Backing Greek Debt Deal 

The fund’s latest move to bail out Greece “raises doubts as to the IMF’s independence from euro-zone politics and institutions, as well as its stewardship of U.S. taxpayer resources,” Michigan Representative Bill Huizenga, Republican chairman of a House subcommittee that oversees IMF issues, said in a statement on Wednesday.

Weekend Must Reads

Forbes | CFPB's Motivation In Banning Class Actions Called Into Question

The recent media “barnstorm” against arbitration clauses that prevent class action lawsuits doesn’t paint a complete picture, a Chicago attorney says, though the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is planning to ban them.

American Banker | Banks Are at the Mercy of Regulatory Absolutism

The problem is that the regulatory agencies have abused their role to implement financial policy to actually make financial policy, usurping the role given to Congress in our tripartite constitutional system. In some cases, this is because Dodd-Frank allowed the regulators too much latitude to interpret the law or fill in specifics where the law was too broad. But in other cases, regulators are simply exceeding their authority, thereby making a mockery of our separation of powers.

Bloomberg View | Ending an Unhealthy Obsession With the Fed

Uncertainty about which goals will define the Fed’s policies is not healthy.  Consumers and businesses can’t make good decisions if they don’t have a strong enough sense of how the central bank will act in any situation.

Heritage Foundation | Red Tape Rising 2016

The Obama Administration is responsible for an unparalleled expansion of the regulatory state, with the imposition of 229 major regulations since 2009 at a cost of $108 billion annually.  The actual costs are far greater, both because costs have not been fully quantified for a significant number of rules, and because many of the worst effects – the loss of freedom and opportunity, for example – are incalculable.

The Daily Signal | As Government Regulations Grow, Business Opportunities Shrink

A recent study by The Heritage Foundation revealed that President Barack Obama has created a whopping total of 20,642 regulations during his presidency. And as we approach his final year in office, we face an additional 2,000 proposed rules he intends to push through to complete his tarnished legacy.

In the News

Housing Wire | House passes sweeping change to loan originator licensing rules

The Hill |Senate votes to block financial adviser rule

American Banker | Questions Loom as Bankers Await Dodd-Frank Replacement Plan

Wall Street Journal | Wall Street Crime: 7 Years, 156 Cases and Few Convictions

Washington Post | Bank Settlements Include ‘Donations’ to Community Groups

MarketWatch | Living will leak sign of bigger info security problems

Wall Street Journal |Notable and Quotable: David Malpass

American Banker | Fincen's Calvery Defends Beneficial Ownership Rule in Final Hearing

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