PH FedACTion: Financial Regulatory Updates
Daily Financial Regulation Update -- Friday, May 21, 2021
May 21, 2021
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Administration Changes
Appointments/Confirmation Hearings
Department of the Treasury - Janet Yellen (effective January 26, 2021)
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau - Rohit Chopra (Nominee)
- Acting Director: Dave Uejio (January 20, 2020)
- Confirmation hearing held on March 2, 2021
- Committee approval March 10, 2021
Securities and Exchange Commission - Gary Gensler (effective April 17, 2021)
Small Business Administration - Isabel Guzman (effective March 16, 2021)
Commodity Futures Trade Commission
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
National Credit Union Administration - Todd M. Harper
Department of Housing and Urban Development - Marcia Fudge (effective March 10, 2021)
Department of Education - Dr. Miguel Cardona (effective March 2, 2011)
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 the full text of the American Rescue Plan of 2021, Enacted March 11, 2021.
Click here to view the full text of the PPP Extension Act of 2021, Enacted March 30, 2021.
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
21st Century Communities: Expanding Opportunity through Infrastructure Investments
May 20, 2021
The Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held a hearing titled, “21st Century Communities: Expanding Opportunity through Infrastructure Investments.”
- Hearing Page
- Testimony of HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge
- Testimony of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg
- Statement by Committee Chair Sherrod Brown
- Statement by Ranking Member Patrick J Toomey
U.S. House of Representatives
Committee on Financial Services
House Passes Seven Bipartisan Financial Services Bills
May 19, 2021
The U.S. House of Representatives passed seven bipartisan House Financial Services Committee bills this week, including The Financial Inclusion in Banking Act (H.R. 1711), which would direct the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Office of Community Affairs to identify causes leading to, and solutions for, under-banked, un-banked, and underserved consumers.
Federal Agencies
U.S. Department of the Treasury
In First 11 Days, Treasury Distributes $105.3 Billion through Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds
May 20, 2021
The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced that it has distributed $105.3 billion to more than 1,500 recipients through the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, established by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. The $105.3 billion distribution is part of the $350 billion allocated in emergency funding for state, local, territorial and Tribal governments.
Treasury Releases Report on the American Families Plan’s Tax Compliance Agenda
May 20, 2021
The U.S. Department of the Treasury released a report on a set of tax compliance measures to increase fairness in the tax system and foster a tax system where Americans pay the taxes they owe. The measures are part of President Biden’s recent proposals in the American Families Plan, with the goal of advancing comprehensive and necessary investments in American children and families.
U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Tax Policy Meetings
May 20, 2021
Leaders from the Office of Tax Policy at the U.S Department of the Treasury participated in meetings with the Steering Group of the Inclusive Framework on base erosion and profit shifting as part of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development / G20 international tax negotiations. The meetings included discussions on the global corporate minimum tax rate.
Federal Reserve Board
Federal Reserve Board Releases Results of Survey of Senior Financial Officers at Banks about their Strategies and Practices for Managing Reserve Balances
May 20, 2021
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System released results of a survey of senior financial officers at banks about their strategies and practices for managing reserve balances. The survey includes responses from banks that held approximately three quarters of total banking system reserve balances at the time of the survey.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell Outlines the Federal Reserve’s Response to Technological Advances Driving Rapid Change in the Global Payments Landscape
May 20, 2021
Jerome H. Powell, the Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve), outlined the Federal Reserve’s response to technological advances driving rapid change in the global payments landscape and highlighted, in particular, the Federal Reserve’s continued analysis of the benefits of it developing and issuing its own central bank digital currency, or CBDC.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Household Financial Stability: Understanding the $400 Question
May 20, 2021
According to a release from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (New York Fed), the New York Fed’s Community Development Team has adopted a new strategy, focusing its energies on three key areas: health, climate and household financial wellbeing. Its goal is to identify emerging solutions — especially those focused on fostering racial equity and improving life for underserved communities. In the post, the authors take a closer look at the financial challenges households face and their effect on the wider economy.
Consumer Credit Demand, Supply, and Unmet Need during the Pandemic
May 20, 2021
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Liberty Street Economics blog released a post titled “Consumer Credit Demand, Supply and Unmet Need during the Pandemic.”
Conference of State Bank Supervisors
Speech: Managing Risk through Networked Supervision
May 20, 2021
Melanie Hall, Montana Commissioner of Banking and Financial Institutions and Chair of the Board of Directors of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors, gave a speech at the State-Federal Supervisory Forum titled “Managing Risk through Networked Supervision.”
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Remarks at 2021 FINRA Annual Conference
May 20, 2021
Gary Gensler, Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, gave remarks at the 2021 Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Annual Conference.
Federal Housing Finance Agency
FHFA Publishes First-of-its-Kind Comprehensive Dataset on Mortgage Risk from 1990-2019
May 20, 2021
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released a paper as part of its FHFA Staff Working Paper Series, titled “A Quarter Century of Mortgage Risk.”
U.S. Department of Labor
Labor Department Issues News Release on Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims
May 20, 2021
The U.S. Department of Labor issued a news release regarding weekly unemployment insurance claims. The release states that, in the week ending May 15, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 444,000, a decrease of 34,000 from the previous week’s revised level (and the lowest level for initial claims since March 14, 2020 when it was 256,000); the previous week’s level was revised up by 5,000 from 473,000 to 478,000; the four-week moving average was 504,750, a decrease of 30,500 from the previous week’s revised average (and the lowest level for this average since March 14, 2020 when it was 225,500); and the previous week’s average was revised up by 1,250 from 534,000 to 535,250.
International
Bank of England
Speech: Housing – The Quiet Decade
May 20, 2021
Sir Jon Cunliffe, Deputy Governor Financial Stability, Member of the Financial Policy Committee, Member of the Monetary Policy Committee and Member of the Prudential Regulation Committee at the Bank of England, gave a speech titled “Housing – The Quiet Decade.”
What Impact are the Financial Policy Committee’s Mortgage Tools Having on Prospective First Time Buyers?
May 20, 2021
The Bank of England’s Bank Overground blog released a post titled “What Impact are the Financial Policy Committee’s Mortgage Tools Having on Prospective First Time Buyers?”
When Applying for a Mortgage, are Renters More Constrained by their Savings or their Income?
May 20, 2021
The Bank of England’s Bank Overground blog released a post titled “When Applying for a Mortgage, are Renters More Constrained by their Savings or their Income?”
UK Financial Conduct Authority
FCA consults on use of new powers to support orderly wind down of critical benchmarks
May 20, 2021
The Financial Conduct Authority published a consultation on its proposed policy framework for exercising two of its new powers under the Benchmarks Regulation, which will be introduced by the Financial Services Act 2021. The powers relate to the use of critical benchmarks that are being wound down. The consultation is another important step in the wind down of LIBOR.