Rep. Fitzgerald Introduces Legislation Targeting the Regulatory State
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Scott Fitzgerald (WI-05) introduced two pieces of legislation aimed at reining in excessive regulatory burdens from the administrative state.
Making the CFPB Accountable to Small Businesses Act
Congressman Scott Fitzgerald introduced the Making the CFPB Accountable to Small Businesses Act, legislation that would require the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to presume that size and sophistication-based tailoring of regulations are needed in SBREFA panel reviews. If tailoring is not undertaken by the panel, they must issue a justification.
“WBA applauds Rep. Fitzgerald for introducing the Making the CFPB Accountable to Small Business Act,” said Wisconsin Bankers Association President/CEO Rose Oswald Poels. “Over the last several years, CFPB’s actions have gone well beyond their original mission and ignored constructive feedback shared during the SBREFA process. This bill would require CFPB to consider the impact of pending rulemaking on the businesses and banks directly affected which is critical to ensuring reasonable regulation.”
“On behalf of ICBA and the nearly 45,000 community bank locations we represent, I write to thank you for introducing the Making the CFPB Accountable to Small Businesses Act,” said Independent Community Bankers of America President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey. “ICBA strongly supports this legislation which would help to preserve the flow of community bank credit to small businesses and result in more flexible agency rules that take account of the size and compliance resources of small businesses.”
“Holding the CFPB accountable is critical to relieving credit unions from burdensome overregulation and an ineffective one-size-fits-all regulatory approach. America’s Credit Unions want to ensure that the CFPB operates with much needed transparency and is incentivized to produce right-sized regulations that support a thriving credit union industry,” said America’s Credit Unions Chief Advocacy Officer Carrie Hunt. “We look forward to continuing to work with Rep. Fitzgerald, other lawmakers, leagues, and credit unions to bring much needed reform to the CFPB.”
Background: Congress has repeatedly urged the CFPB to narrowly tailor its rules to specific consumer abuses. When the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) was enacted in 1996, Congress intended to enhance and improve the ability of federal agencies to thoroughly understand how their rules impact small firms and concordantly use that information to eliminate unnecessary burdens on those entities. Over time, the SBREFA process has become a mere check-the-box initiative where outreach is made to small businesses, but their feedback is not adopted in the final rulemaking.
Supporters: Wisconsin Bankers Association (WBA), Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), and America’s Credit Unions (ACU).
Read the bill text here.
Separation of Powers Restoration Act (SOPRA)
Congressman Scott Fitzgerald introduced the Separation of Powers Restoration Act (SOPRA), legislation that would mitigate the abuse of power by unelected bureaucrats in our federal agencies.
Read the bill text here.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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