Rep. Loudermilk Sponsors Regulatory Relief for Community Banks and Credit Unions

Rep. Loudermilk (R-GA), a member of the House Financial Services Committee, introduced the Comprehensive Regulatory Review Act, H.R. 4607. This legislation will strengthen, improve, and expand the Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act’s (EGRPRA) review process.
 
“When I meet with community banks and credit unions across Georgia, I consistently hear of one issue that makes it difficult for them to best serve their customers. Most describe it as the “death by a thousand cuts,” administered by excessive, and often non-applicable or outdated, regulations from federal bureaucracies.
 
“In the short time I have been in Congress, one truth I have learned is that there are some bureaucrats who never saw a regulation they didn’t like, no matter how outdated, non-relevant or burdensome it may be. The Comprehensive Regulatory Review Act requires financial regulatory agencies to complete a review of their regulations every seven years and identify those regulations that are duplicative, outdated or over-burdensome.
 
“The CRRA will require these agencies to eliminate, modify or tailor unnecessary regulations every seven years, not just pencil-whip a report to Congress, as is required by the current EGRPRA laws. This bill is about rightsizing government regulators so they are more efficient, effective and up-to-date.”

The Comprehensive Regulatory Review Act:
o       Requires EGRPRA (Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act) reviews to be done every 7 years instead of every 10
o       Expands EGRPRA reviews to include all regulated institutions, not just insured depository institutions
o       Expands EGRPRA to include the CFPB in addition to the OCC, Fed, and FDIC
o       Codifies the NCUA’s participation in EGRPRA, as the NCUA participated in the most recent EGRPRA review voluntarily
o       Requires regulators to tailor regulations that they find to be outdated, unnecessary, or unduly burdensome, instead of just producing a report
o       Overall, the bill modernizes and improves the EGRPRA review process to account for the many changes that have taken place since EGRPRA was enacted
 
Original co-sponsors of this legislation include Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Rep. Sean Duffy (R-WI).
   

Rep. Josh Gottheimer stated, “We need targeted guardrails to protect consumers from scam artists and polluters, but our economic growth is bogged down by outdated and duplicative regulations. A smart, pragmatic process requiring regular review of regulations will keep businesses on track instead of buried in paperwork and hamstrung by red tape. The Comprehensive Regulatory Review Act will ensure that consumers are protected, businesses can grow, and [our] robust financial sector will thrive.”

 
To read the full text of H.R. 4607, click HERE.