Oxley: Bankers Unlikely To Oppose Reg Relief Bill

The bankers' opposition to regulatory relief legislation based on credit union provisions has apparently melted away this year.

Rep. Michael Oxley, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, told The Credit Union Journal last week after speaking at CUNA's GAC he hasn't had any indications that the powerful American Bankers Association will oppose the bill again this year, as it did last year. The ABA pulled its support form the bill, with dozens of banker-friendly provisions, because they felt it gave too much to credit unions. Oxley said he expects to introduce a new regulatory relief bill with numerous credit union provisions in the coming weeks. Oxley also said he expects a deposit insurance reform bill, which will raise the coverage on federally insured accounts to $130,000, from its current $100,000 per account, to be approved by his committee over the next few weeks and reach the floor of the House in early March. That bill, which has a good chance of passage this year, is not seen as a potential vehicle for regulatory relief, however, Oxley said.