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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)

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.”

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.