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Biden’s American Families Plan targets education, child care, paid leave
Reports about the contents of President Joe Biden’s American Families Plan (AFP) have been circulating for weeks, but the President provided details in his address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday night. Among other provisions, the AFP would make a “generation-defining investment in rural America.”
Senate moves toward comprehensive China legislation
Senate work continued this week toward a massive package of bipartisan legislation that sets forth strategic, economic, and diplomatic responses to China’s challenges to US and global security. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted out its Strategic Competition Act, which includes diplomatic, financial, and military measures to strengthen international alliances, push back against predatory economic behavior, and boost American competitiveness in science, technology, and infrastructure.
An OCC Insider’s Perspective on Fintechs and Bank Charters
While the novel fintech charter may never actually be granted, the concept ironically may usher in a rash of neobanks under full national charters, like Varo Bank. In a way that may end up creating a more level playing field.
Who gets to be a bank?
The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions held the first of what Chairman Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) said would be multiple hearings yesterday to discuss whether and how fintech companies and other businesses that offer credit should serve customers through nontraditional charters.
House Subcommittee reaffirms the Strengths of Industrial Banks
Today, the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions conducted a hearing “Banking Innovation or Regulatory Evasion? Exploring Trends in Financial Institution Charters.” Several witnesses provided verbal and written testimony regarding their views on various banking charters, new advances in technology for financial services, consumer protection and data privacy.
President submits “skinny budget”
President Joe Biden began the long process of hammering out a budget today by sending Congress his discretionary funding request for FY 2022, which an administration official described as “reinvesting in the foundation of our country’s strength.”
Big Boat is Stuck
It was a busy week in Washington. A really busy week. The President had his first press conference. The Secretary of the Treasury and the Chairman of the Fed testified twice, on opposite sides of Capitol Hill. The Secretary of Transportation spent more than five hours talking to a House committee about infrastructure. Immigrants gathered at the border, North Korea tested some missiles, another COVID vaccine faced approval delays.
Welcome, Spring
If you wake up at 3:47 Eastern Standard Time tomorrow, you can welcome the vernal equinox in person. The NCAA basketball tournament has started, baseball is only two weeks away, and we have (almost) made it through another winter. Congratulations.
Industrial Banks Respond to Recent Seminar
“We agree with the BPI that examining Industrial Banks in today’s environment is important and necessary. Failing to include anyone on the panel representing Industrial Banks makes me wonder if the actual purpose of the panel was to obfuscate the facts about Industrial Banks rather than educate interested stakeholders,” stated Frank Pignanelli, Executive Director, The National Association of Industrial Bankers. (“Industrial Banks” is the most accurate label for these institutions.)
Senate considers revised rescue plan
The Senate will be voting well into the weekend on amendments to H.R. 1319, the American Rescue Plan Act. Senate Democrats have agreed to a number of changes to the House bi
House to vote on COVID-19 relief package
The House of Representatives will vote tonight on President Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package. The House bill includes language to raise the federal minimum wage to $15/hour by 2025, but Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough ruled yesterday that including that language in the Senate bill would violate the Senate rule that protects the bill from filibuster.
Life on Mars?
It was not exactly a snow—er, slow news week, and we send our warmest wishes to friends in Texas who are still waiting for power, water, and a break in the weather. But the most exciting news of the week was the Perseverance Mars Rover landing, 140 million miles away. The average temperature on the surface of Mars is about -80F, just for comparison.
House committees speed through budget work
With a deadline of February 16, twelve House committees marked up legislation this week to apportion the $1.9 trillion in COVID relief approved by the House and Senate.
Senate, House approve $1.9 trillion relief plan through reconciliation
You’d think something called “vote-a-rama” would be more fun. The Senate voted to proceed on S.Con.Res. 5, a resolution that lays out the budget framework for President Biden’s $1.9 billion COVID relief package, on Tuesday, and took its final vote on the resolution after 5:00 this morning.
Careful, fire will burn you
The four members of the Securities and Exchange Commission, which currently lacks a confirmed chair, issued a statement today reminding investors that “extreme stock price volatility has the potential to expose investors to rapid and severe losses and undermine market confidence.”
The greatest there ever was
We feel a baseball-sized hole in the world today. His career lasted 23 years, his record lasted 30 years, but his legend lives forever. We raise our caps to Henry Aaron, Hammerin’ Hank, who retired with 755 home runs and a lifetime batting average of .305, o never got that much attention until people realized he was within striking distance of Babe Ruth’s home-run record. His life of quiet, consistent excellence, often in the face of race-based hatred, will be a model for generations.
Washington prepares for change
We admit it: current events exceed our vocabulary. If you saw any news at all this week, you already know that the House of Representatives voted 232-197 on Wednesday to impeach President Donald J. Trump, whose term ends at noon next Wednesday.
Farewell to a friend
The relentless pace of events over the past year has made it hard to stop and note individual losses as they’ve happened. But we would be remiss if we didn’t pay our respects to our dear friend and mentor Richard Bates, Disney’s longtime man in Washington. It would not be an exaggeration to say that this office wouldn’t exist if not for Richard.
COVID relief/omnibus spending legislation passes, veto watch begins
You should already have received our summary of the massive bill Congress passed on Monday night: $900 billion in COVID-19 relief, $1.4 trillion to fund government operations for FY 2021, and dozens of unrelated authorizations added to a must-pass piece of legislation.
FDIC finishes long-awaited rules on brokered funds, ILCs
Banks and some of their deposit-gathering businesses won additional regulatory relief Tuesday when the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. finalized a new framework for classifying brokered deposits enabling a broader set of companies to escape restrictions.