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PH FedACTion: Financial Regulatory Updates

Daily Financial Regulation Update -- Friday, February 19, 2021

February 19, 2021

FedACTion Task Force

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PH Client Alerts

Click here to read more from our Coronavirus series.

Administration Changes

Appointments/Confirmation Hearings

Department of the Treasury – Janet Yellen (effective January 26, 2021)

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – Rohit Chopra (Nominee)

Securities and Exchange Commission – Gary Gensler (Nominee)

Small Business Administration – Isabel Guzman (Nominee)

Commodity Futures Trade Commission

National Credit Union Administration – Todd M. Harper

Department of Housing and Urban Development – Marcia Fudge (Nominee)

Department of Education – Miguel Cardona (Nominee)

Congress

Click here to view the full text of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), Enacted March 27, 2020.

Click here to view the full text of the Paycheck Protection Program Increase Act of 2020, Enacted April 24, 2020.

Click here to view the full text of the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020, Enacted June 5, 2020.

Click here to view the full text of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Enacted December 27, 2020.  

Click here to view a running list of proposed legislation from the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, House Committee on Financial Services, and House Committee on Small Business.

U.S. Senate

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

Senator Brown Delivers Remarks at Hearing on Recovery from COVID Crisis

February 18, 2021

Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs delivered opening remarks at a hearing entitled: “The Coronavirus Crisis: Paving the Way to An Equitable Recovery.”

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee on Financial Services

Committee on Financial Services Announces Updates to its February Hearing Schedule

February 18, 2021

The House Committee on Financial Services announced the following updates to the hearing schedule for the month of February:

NEW DATE: February 25 at 10:00 AM Eastern: The Subcommittee on National Security, International Development and Monetary Policy will convene for a virtual hearing entitled, "Dollars against Democracy: Domestic Terrorist Financing in the Aftermath of Insurrection."

NEW DATE: February 25 at 2:00 PM Eastern: The Subcommittee on Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship and Capital Markets will convene for a virtual hearing entitled, “Climate Change and Social Responsibility: Helping Corporate Boards and Investors Make Decisions for a Sustainable World.”

Chairwoman Waters Delivers Remarks at Committee Hearing on Recent Market Volatility

February 18, 2021

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, delivered a statement at a hearing entitled, “Game Stopped? Who Wins and Loses When Short Sellers, Social Media, and Retail Investors Collide.”

Federal Agencies

Federal Reserve Board

Governor Brainard Delivers Speech on the Role of Financial Institutions in Tackling the Challenges of Climate Change

February 18, 2021

Governor Lael Brainard of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System delivered a speech at the “2021 IIF U.S. Climate Finance Summit: Financing a Pro Growth Pro Markets Transition to a Sustainable, Low-Carbon Economy,” hosted by the Institute of International Finance, Washington, D.C.

Federal Reserve Bank of New York

New York Fed Research Asks How Competitive are U.S. Treasury Repo Markets?      

February 18, 2021

As part of its Liberty Street Economics series, researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York addressed competition in the U.S. Treasury repo markets. The authors demonstrate that the secured funding portion of the repo market is competitive by showing that trading is not concentrated overall and explaining how the pricing of interdealer repo trades is available to a wide range of market participants. 

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

FDIC Releases Working Paper on Indirect Costs of Government Aid and Intermediary
Supply Effects: Lessons from the Paycheck Protection Program

February 18, 2021

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation released a working paper discussing the indirect costs of government aid and intermediary supply effects resulting from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

Fannie Mae

U.S. Economy Expected to Expand at 6.7 Percent Rate in 2021

February 18, 2021

The U.S. economy is expected to grow 6.7% in 2021, an improvement from both last year’s 2.5% contraction and up from last month’s forecast of 5.3%, according to the February 2021 commentary from the Fannie Mae Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group.

Department of Labor

DOL Releases Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report Update

February 18, 2021

The U.S. Department of Labor released its unemployment insurance weekly claims report update. In the week ending February 13, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 861,000, an increase of 13,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised up by 55,000 from 793,000 to 848,000. The 4-week moving average was 833,250, a decrease of 3,500 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised up by 13,750 from 823,000 to 836,750.