[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 8 (Tuesday, January 14, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S326-S327]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. McCONNELL (for himself and Mr. Paul):
  S. 1916. A bill to amend the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and 
Consumer Protection Act to provide for an application process for 
interested parties to apply for a county to be designated as a rural 
area, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 
Urban Affairs.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I have spoken often on the floor about 
the challenges and opportunities for the future that the people of 
eastern Kentucky and rural parts of the Commonwealth face. Many of 
these challenges stem from this administration's regulatory overreach, 
whether it is a war on coal, ObamaCare or Dodd-Frank. Too many people 
are out of work, which has placed a drastic burden on the coal mining 
industry, and harshly cut the number of jobs available in the coal 
mining industry and related industries.
  In spite of the challenges the people of eastern Kentucky face, I 
have great confidence we can overcome that and succeed. I was pleased 
to be able to assist the Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation in 
receiving a Promise Zone designation, which was awarded just last week. 
That is why I wrote the administration in support of this designation 
last year. This economic initiative is just one way to help jump-start 
the region's journey out of economic distress.
  But we need more than that. My friend and colleague in the other 
Chamber, Representative Hal Rogers, is leading an effort to identify 
ways to lift Appalachia out of the cycle of poverty and unemployment 
through the SOAR Initiative, and I applaud his efforts.
  To offer yet another possibility for eastern Kentucky, my friend and 
colleague Senator Rand Paul and I introduced the Economic Freedom Zones 
Act, to further enable eastern Kentucky to lift the burdens of some of 
the poorest families in the country. Our legislation would roll back 
government regulations and tax barriers to spur job creation and reform 
failed educational systems to aid disadvantaged children.
  So continuing my efforts to find ways to assist these rural counties 
and give these communities a voice, I am pleased to introduce today, 
along with Senator Paul, the Helping Expand Lending Practices in Rural 
Communities Act or simply the HELP Rural

[[Page S327]]

Communities Act. My friend and colleague in the House, Representative 
Andy Barr, introduced this legislation in that body, and I applaud his 
efforts to see it passed.
  The HELP Rural Communities Act would give rural counties in Kentucky 
a voice when the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, has 
incorrectly labeled them as ``nonrural''--just another example of this 
administration's one-size-fits-all, we-know-best approach to governing. 
Several counties in Kentucky, such as Bath County, have been labeled as 
``nonrural'' and are therefore barred from certain rural lending 
practices helpful to farmers and small businesses.
  If you have ever been to these counties, as I have, you would most 
certainly disagree with the CFPB's ruling. But current law provides 
literally no opportunity to challenge the CFPB's decision. My bill 
would allow counties which have been improperly designated as 
``nonrural'' to petition the CFPB with additional local information to 
reconsider their status in order to ensure that rural communities, such 
as those in eastern Kentucky, have the access to credit they need to 
grow their economy.
  This is an important step in the effort to renew hope for the future 
in rural Kentucky, especially eastern Kentucky. Given the bipartisan 
interest shown in recent weeks to get government out of the way and let 
the people of the region work, Congress and the President can come 
together to pass this legislation on behalf of eastern Kentuckians and 
rural communities. I look forward to working with my colleagues, 
Senator Paul and Representative Barr, to see that we get this passed.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 1916

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Helping Expand Lending 
     Practices in Rural Communities Act of 2014'' or the ``HELP 
     Rural Communities Act of 2014''.

     SEC. 2. DESIGNATION OF COUNTY AS A RURAL AREA.

       Section 1022 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and 
     Consumer Protection Act (12 U.S.C. 5512) is amended by adding 
     at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(e) Designation of County as a Rural Area.--
       ``(1) Application.--Not later than 90 days after the date 
     of the enactment of this subsection, the Bureau shall 
     establish an application process under which a person who 
     lives or does business in a State may, with respect to a 
     county in such State that has not been designated by the 
     Bureau as a rural area for purposes of a Federal consumer 
     financial law, apply for such county to be so designated.
       ``(2) Evaluation criteria.--When evaluating an application 
     submitted under paragraph (1), the Bureau shall take into 
     consideration the following factors:
       ``(A) Criteria used by the Director of the Bureau of the 
     Census for classifying geographical areas as rural or urban.
       ``(B) Criteria used by the Director of the Office of 
     Management and Budget to designate counties as metropolitan 
     or micropolitan or neither.
       ``(C) Criteria used by the Secretary of Agriculture to 
     determine property eligibility for rural development 
     programs.
       ``(D) The Department of Agriculture rural-urban commuting 
     area codes.
       ``(E) A written opinion provided by the State's banking 
     regulator.
       ``(F) Population density.
       ``(3) Public comment period.--
       ``(A) In general.--Not later than 60 days after receiving 
     an application submitted under paragraph (1), the Bureau 
     shall--
       ``(i) publish such application in the Federal Register; and
       ``(ii) make such application available for public comment 
     for not fewer than 90 days.
       ``(B)  Limitation on additional applications.--Nothing in 
     this subsection shall be construed to require the Bureau, 
     during the public comment period with respect to an 
     application submitted under paragraph (1), to accept an 
     additional application with respect to the county that is the 
     subject of the initial application.
       ``(4) Information required to be published.--The Bureau 
     shall enter each application submitted under paragraph (1) in 
     a sortable, downloadable database that is publicly accessible 
     through the Web site of the Bureau.
       ``(5) Decision on designation.--Not later than 90 days 
     after the end of the public comment period under paragraph 
     (3)(A) for an application, the Bureau shall--
       ``(A) grant or deny such application; and
       ``(B) publish such grant or denial in the Federal Register, 
     along with an explanation of what factors the Bureau relied 
     on in making such determination.
       ``(6) Subsequent applications.--A decision by the Bureau 
     under paragraph (5) to deny an application for a county to be 
     designated as a rural area shall not preclude the Bureau from 
     accepting a subsequent application submitted under paragraph 
     (1) for such county to be so designated, so long as such 
     subsequent application is made after the end of the 90-day 
     period beginning on the date that the Bureau denies the 
     application under paragraph (5).''.
                                 ______