Financial Services
From owning a home and saving for the future, to making investments and starting a small business, financial services issues impact many aspects of Americans’ lives.
The most pressing issue facing financial institutions in the Third Congressional District is the compliance burden from Dodd-Frank regulations. The Dodd-Frank regulations were meant to lift the economy out of recession and end the “too big to fail” phenomenon that came out of the 2008 financial crisis. Instead, the one-size-fits-all regulations have hurt community banks, stunted the growth of small businesses, and limited credit options for lower-income Americans. As a member of the House Financial Services Committee, I am working to provide our small banks and credit unions relief from heavy-handed Dodd-Frank regulations that should never have been applied to them in the first place.
Key Issues:
- Regulations on Community Banks and Credit Unions: The most widespread concern that I’ve heard from small banks throughout Colorado is that increased regulatory compliance burdens have taken vital resources away from their ability to run their business and provide important financial services to their communities. The Small Bank Exam Cycle Reform Act (H.R. 1553), a bill I introduced that allows well-managed community banks to be eligible for an 18-month exam cycle (instead of a 12-month cycle), was signed into law as part of a larger legislative package in December 2015. I have also introduced the Taking Account of Institutions with Low Operation Risk (TAILOR) Act (H.R. 2896) to ensure federal regulatory agencies tailor regulations to fit the business model and risk profile of the financial institution, rather than impose overly burdensome, one-size-fits-all regulations on community banks and credit unions.
- Consumer Access to Credit: On June 2, 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) proposed a regulation that places new federal restrictions on financial institutions that are considered payday, auto title, or other small-dollar lenders. The new regulation would preempt existing payday lending regulations that are already in place in 36 states, including Colorado, and would make it harder for consumers to access credit in an emergency situation. In 2010, the Colorado state legislature passed a bipartisan set of reforms that increased protections for consumers from predatory loans, but now the federal government wants to come in and completely override this work. I introduced the Accounting for Consumer Credit and Encouraging State Solutions (ACCESS) Act (H.R. 5552) to preserve state reforms that are benefitting Coloradans and protect the 12 million Americans who need access to small dollar loans to pay for unexpected emergency expenses in order to keep their financial footing.