Financial Services

Small businesses create the majority of new jobs.  Businesses large and small need access to capital in order to grow.  Hardworking American families help the economy when they responsibly use credit to buy a car, finance an education, or remodel their kitchen.

Washington should support economic growth.  Instead, President Obama supports a policy of burdensome regulation, including the mammoth Dodd-Frank financial reform package of 400 new rules which limit financial choices for both businesses and families.  The result is meager economic growth of only two percent.

To be clear, I am not anti-regulation, and I am not opposed to necessary reform.  Unfortunately, Dodd-Frank goes overboard, fixing problems that don’t exist and ignoring the root cause of the financial crisis, which was the government requirement of easy credit for those who were a credit risk.

As a Member of the House Financial Services Committee, I work each week to address and correct problems created by Dodd-Frank, as well as push for complete repeal.

Many economists warn that certain provisions of Dodd-Frank will make it much harder for small businesses to qualify for loans they need to create jobs.  To address this, I have introduced the Right to Lend Act (H.R. 1766), which repeals those specific provisions of Dodd-Frank and eases the paperwork burden on small financial institutions.

Dodd-Frank also hurts the economy when new regulations designed for massive, “systemic risk” financial institutions trickle down and needlessly harm small businesses, community banks, and credit unions.  In April, the House of Representatives passed legislation I wrote to give small businesses a voice in the regulatory process by creating a small business advisory board within the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Advisory Boards Act (H.R. 1195) also makes permanent existing advisory boards representing credit unions and community banks.  The House of Representatives approved my CFPB reform legislation by a bipartisan vote of 235-183, and it has now moved to the Senate for further action.

Currently, I am preparing to introduce the bipartisan Financial Regulatory Clarity Act of 2015.  This common sense legislation will require financial regulators to ensure proposed regulations do not conflict, contradict, or duplicate other regulations already in place.  This will reduce confusion, lessen the red tape currently strangling the economy, and allow businesses to focus on creating new jobs.

As a resident of Charlotte, I understand that the financial services industry is vital to our local economy.  As a former small business owner, I understand how burdensome regulations make it difficult to create jobs.  As your Congressman and a Member of the Financial Services Committee, my goal is to work toward common sense solutions which help hardworking American families, grow an opportunity economy, and create jobs.