House Financial Services Committee Approves 11 Bills Relating to "Regulatory Relief"

The House Financial Services Committee approved eleven bills which aim to relieve community banks and credit unions from certain regulatory requirements.

According to the House Financial Services press release, since the enactment of Dodd-Frank, "big financial institutions have gotten bigger and small financial institutions have become fewer."

The approved bills include:

• H.R. 299, the Capital Access for Small Community Financial Institutions Act. Sponsored by Rep. Steve Stivers (R-OH):
  • The bill would allow privately insured state chartered credit unions to apply for membership in the Federal Home Loan Bank System, which would help them better serve the financial needs of consumers. The bill passed the House by a vote of 395-0 during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 601, the Eliminate Privacy Notice Confusion Act. Sponsored by Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO).
  • The bill aims to reduce confusion among consumers by clarifying that they will receive privacy notices after opening a new account when their financial institution's privacy policies change rather than an annual notice. The House passed a similar bill by voice vote during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 650, the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act. Sponsored by Rep. Stephen Fincher (R-TN).
  • The bill would amend the Truth in Lending Act, as modified by the Dodd-Frank Act, to ensure that consumers can continue to have access to manufactured housing by altering the definition of a "high-cost mortgage." The bill passed the committee by voice vote during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 685, the Mortgage Choice Act. Sponsored by Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI).
  • The bill aims to provide clarity to the calculation of points and fees, allowing more loans to qualify as Qualified Mortgages and increasing options for borrowers. The bill passed the House by voice vote during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 1195, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Advisory Boards Act. Sponsored by Rep. Robert Pittenger (R-NC).
  • The bill would create a small business advisory board to advise the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ("CFPB"). This advisory board will provide small businesses the opportunity to weigh in on matters of concern, and for the CFPB to learn about market conditions affecting these businesses. The bill also codifies two other advisory committees created by CFPB Director Cordray, the Credit Union Advisory Council and the Community Bank Advisory Council. The committee passed the bill by voice vote during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 1259, the Helping Expand Lending Practices in Rural Communities Act. Sponsored by Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY).
  • The bill would provide an appeals process for areas to be designated as rural for the purpose of exempting certain loans from the CFPB's Qualified Mortgage rule. The bill passed the House by voice vote during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 1265, the Bureau Advisory Commission Transparency Act. Sponsor: Rep. Sean Duffy (R-WI)
  • The bill aims to bring greater transparency and accountability to the CFPB by subjecting it to the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Only three agencies are exempted from the Federal Advisory Committee Act – the CIA, the Directorate of National Intelligence and the Federal Reserve. The CFPB is not involved in intelligence collection, covert operations, or the formation of monetary policy, so there is no reason that it cannot hold its committee and subcommittee meetings in public. This bill passed the committee by voice vote during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 1367, clarifying the Expedited Funds Availability Act's application to U.S. territories. Sponsored by Rep. Amata Radewagen (R-American Samoa)
  • The bill aims to improve check-clearing wait times in American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands by extending the application of the Expedited Funds Availability Act. The bill passed the House by voice vote during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 1408 the Mortgage Servicing Asset Capital Requirements Act. Sponsored by Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO).
  • The bill would direct federal banking agencies to conduct a study to determine the appropriate capital requirements for mortgage servicing assets for community financial institutions. The bill passed the committee 44-9 during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 1480, the SAFE Act Confidentiality and Privilege Enhancement Act. Sponsored by Rep. Robert Dold (R-IL)
  • The bill aims to provide assurance for financial institutions that privileged information shared between federal banking regulators and state regulatory agencies will be protected and remain confidential. The bill passed the House by voice vote during the 113th Congress.
• H.R. 1529, the Community Institution Mortgage Relief Act. Sponsored by Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA)
  • The bill aims to ensure that consumers continue to have various credit choices by allowing smaller community financial institutions to enter the mortgage market without being deterred by the high cost of regulatory compliance. The bill amends the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act to direct the CFPB to provide exemptions from the mortgage escrow account requirements of Dodd-Frank and for small servicers that annually service 20,000 or fewer mortgage loans. The bill passed the committee 43-16 during the 113th Congress.

See: House Financial Services Press Release.