Claire Williams

The Federal Reserve, which currently faces a Supreme Court case related to the fees, will vote on a proposal next week that will likely open up a rulemaking process to lower debit card interchange fees. 

At a Senate Banking subcommittee meeting, Republican and Democratic lawmakers both promoted the mission of community development financial institutions and warned of upcoming threats to their funding and proposals to revamp the CDFI certification process.

Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, ranking Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, is pushing a bill to re-freeze Iranian funds made available after a Biden-negotiated hostage deal last month. Scott says the move is a response to Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra said the CFPB is enforcing a long-dormant provision of Dodd-Frank in its advisory opinion prohibiting banks from charging fees to obtain basic account information.

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said that alleged union abuses should impact how regulators view corporate governance and risk management.

The high court will hear oral arguments on Oct. 3 on whether the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding violates the Appropriations clause. A key issue is whether parameters can be placed around Congress' authority over the federal purse strings.

Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., was the only Democratic lawmaker to vote against the legislation, while three Republicans voted in favor.

Friedman attributes much of her success to her innate curiosity, and an ability to find small details interesting. 

As general counsel, Patterson leads roughly 1,300 attorneys and legal professionals across the bank. She was formerly the general counsel at TD Bank Group. 

The indictment of Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., is inconvenient for some Democratic priorities, but unlikely to impact a cannabis banking bill up for debate in the Senate Banking Committee.

Federal prosecutors say Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat who sits on the Senate Banking Committee, accepted bribes in return for exerting political influence — including helping Fred Daibes, a small-bank executive who had been accused of loan fraud.

The new text of the cannabis banking bill includes language that has "papered over" an issue about Operation Choke Point.

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy, continued to say that the Basel III rulemaking might have violated the Administrative Procedures Act

Bankers largely support expanding government-backed farm loan programs, and in general support continued funding for crop insurance. But politics is making swift passage of a traditionally uncontroversial bill challenging.

The Senate Banking Committee is expected to mark up the Secure and Fair Enforcement Act, or SAFE Banking Act, the week of Sept. 25.

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., pressed one witness to say that bank regulators' Basel III endgame proposal, which would raise capital significantly for the largest banks, may have violated the Administrative Procedure Act.

Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler told lawmakers that artificial intelligence could be used to game securities transactions in favor of corporate interests over those of investors. Critics say the SEC's plan to combat such conflicts of interest is hostile to technology.

Cannabis banking, the Durbin-Marshall credit card bill and executive compensation legislation could be on the agenda this fall, but banking regulators' Basel III endgame proposal has made bipartisan compromise more complicated.

Two related cases the Supreme Court is considering hing on whether state laws preempt the National Banking Act on the payment of interest on mortgage escrow accounts.

The Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency have until mid-2024 to finalize bank rules without risking a CRA nullification if Republicans run the table in 2024.