Top Financial Services Republican presses regulators on Dodd-Frank rollbacks
By: Sylvan Lane, The Hill
Washington,
May 6, 2019 -
The top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee on Friday pressed federal regulators for updates on their efforts to finalize rule rollbacks signed by President Trump in 2018.
Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), asked the chiefs of five federal financial regulatory agencies for status updates on their implementation of a bipartisan law passed to loosen Dodd-Frank regulations.
Republicans have pressured the Federal Reserve Board, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to pick up the pace on implementing the 2018 law.
GOP lawmakers who’ve long been critical of Dodd-Frank had expressed frustration at the lengthy process of finalizing the 2018 law’s changes to the sweeping reform law that had been signed by former President Obama in 2010.
The measure was fiercely opposed by most Democratic lawmakers and a broad coalition of progressive political groups and financial regulatory advocates.
In letters to the leaders of those five agencies, McHenry said, “Congress expects swift action” and asked how long it would take for the regulators to finish the rollbacks.
“Completion of these targeted regulations will collectively promote greater economic growth and competition in our marketplaces ultimately benefiting consumers, McHenry wrote.
The five agencies responsible for bank regulation have a slew of rule revisions to finalize in order to fully implement the 2018 rollback law.
McHenry asked the Fed, FDIC and OCC to an update on several measures to loosen capital and liquidity rules for banks targeted for relief by the 2018 rollback, along with a revision of the so-called Volcker Rule on certain risky investments.
McHenry also asked the CFPB for a broader update on its efforts to revise mortgage disclosure and data collection rules, and the SEC for information on several rollbacks intended to boost initial public offerings and ease other regulatory hassles.
"Congress made clear its intent that right sizing overly burdensome regulations is to be a priority among your respective agencies," McHenry wrote.
