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PH FedACTion: Financial Regulatory Updates

Daily Financial Regulation Update - Saturday, May 23, 2020

May 23, 2020

FedACTion Task Force

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Click here to read more from our Coronavirus series.

Congress

Click here to view the full text of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), 116 HR. 748, 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 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

Senators Brown, Grassley, Wyden and Scott Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Prevent Garnishment of CARES Act Relief Payments

May 22, 2020

U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) introduced a bill to protect recovery payments provided in the CARES Act from garnishment by private debt collectors.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee on Financial Services

Committee to Hold Bipartisan Virtual Roundtable on Impact of COVID-19 on Housing Markets

May 22, 2020

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, announced that on May 22, 2020, Housing, Community Development, and Insurance Subcommittee Chairman Wm. Lacy Clay (D-MO) and Ranking Member Steve Stivers (R-OH) will host a virtual roundtable entitled, “Reviewing the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on U.S. Housing Markets.”

Committee on Small Business

Crow Hosts Forum Examining the Issues Facing Small Business Insurance Policyholders Related to COVID-19

May 21, 2020

The House Small Business Subcommittee on Innovation and Workforce Development, under Chairman Jason Crow (D-CO), held a virtual forum on May 21, 2020 focused on the issues facing small businesses trying to make business interruption insurance claims related to COVID-19.

Federal Agencies

Federal Reserve Bank of New York

Risk Preferences at the Time of COVID-19: An Experiment with Professional Traders and Students

May 22, 2020

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has released a staff report focusing on whether the COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on risk preferences. The report finds that the shock to social and economic life due to the COVID-19 pandemic has not significantly affected risk preferences, both for a sample of professional traders and for one of students. They note that the stability of risk preferences after arguably the biggest shock to developed economies since World War II suggests that preferences for risk are a stable characteristic of individual behavior.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

CFPB Takes Action to Help Struggling Homeowners Seeking Mitigation Efforts; Consumers Seeking Small-Dollar Loans

May 22, 2020

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it issued two No-Action Letter (NAL) Templates under its innovation policies. To encourage innovation, last year the CFPB introduced an improved NAL Policy that includes, among other things, a more streamlined review process focusing on the consumer benefits and risks of the applicant’s product or service. NALs provide increased regulatory certainty through a statement that the CFPB will not bring a supervisory or enforcement action against a company for providing a product or service under certain facts and circumstances. Using the first NAL template approved on May 22, 2020, mortgage servicers seeking to assist struggling borrowers to avoid foreclosure and engage in loss mitigation efforts would be able to apply for their own NAL. The CFPB also approved a NAL template that insured depository institutions can use to apply for a NAL covering their small-dollar credit products.

Conference of State Bank Supervisors

Financial Supervision During A Pandemic

May 20, 2020

Kevin Hagler, Chairman of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) and Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance, gave remarks on financial supervision during a pandemic at the CSBS State-Federal Supervisory Forum on May 20, 2020.

Securities and Exchange Commission

SEC Announces Virtual Conference on Municipal Securities Disclosure

May 22, 2020

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it has rescheduled its conference entitled “Spotlight on Transparency: A Discussion of Secondary Market Municipal Securities Disclosure Practices” for June 16, 2020.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

CFTC Issues COVID-19 Customer Advisory on Commodity Exchange-Traded Products and Funds

May 22, 2020

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued a Customer Advisory informing the public about the unique risks associated with certain trading vehicles that use futures contracts or other commodity interests as they make investment decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

CFTC to Hold an Open Commission Meeting on May 28, 2020

May 21, 2020

Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Heath P. Tarbert announced that the CFTC will hold an open meeting via conference call on May 28, 2020 at 10:00 a.m., Eastern time.

Department of Labor

Department of Labor Report Shows Unemployment Jumped in all 50 States to Dramatically Differing Degrees

May 22, 2020

The Department of Labor issued a report confirming all 50 states reported higher unemployment rates in April, but demonstrating how results were dramatically different around the country.

International

Bank of England

Update on the Contingent Term Repo Facility – Market Notice on May 22, 2020

May 22, 2020

The Bank of England announced that, in light of more stable funding market conditions and recent usage patterns, it will discontinue three-month Contingent Term Repo Facility operations at the end of May 2020. The final operation is scheduled to take place on May 28, 2020.

Life beyond Solvency II: A View from the Top of the Regulator

May 22, 2020

Charlotte Gerken, Executive Director of Insurance Supervision at the Bank of England, gave remarks at the Association of British Insurers Prudential Regulation webinar, on how the insurance industry has responded to the COVID-19 crisis, including how elements of the Solvency II regime have behaved in recent conditions.

Prudential Regulation Authority

Statement by the PRA on Guidance on the Application of Regulatory Capital and IFRS 9 Requirements to Payment Holidays Granted or Extended to Address COVID-19

May 22, 2020

The Prudential Regulation Authority has issued a statement that provides further information on the application of regulatory capital and IFRS 9 requirements to payment holidays granted or extended to address the challenges of COVID-19.

UK Financial Conduct Authority

FCA Acts to Strengthen Protections for Customers using Payment Firms

May 22, 2020

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a consultation on additional guidance for payments firms to strengthen the way in which they look after customers’ funds. The guidance is part of a broader program to set out its expectations for the payments sector.

FCA Announces Support for Customers who are Struggling to Pay their Mortgage due to Coronavirus

May 22, 2020

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced proposals which will continue support for customers who are struggling to pay their mortgage due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The proposals outline the options firms will be required to provide customers coming to an end of a payment holiday, as well as those who are yet to request one. For customers yet to request a payment holiday, the time to apply would be extended until October 1, 2020. For those who are still experiencing temporary payment difficulties due to COVID-19, firms should continue to offer support, which could include extending a payment holiday by a three additional months.