[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 94 (Thursday, June 7, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E792]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     S. 2155, THE ECONOMIC GROWTH, REGULATORY RELIEF, AND CONSUMER 
                             PROTECTION ACT

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                         HON. SUZANNE BONAMICI

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 7, 2018

  Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to S. 2155 
because it will undermine critical safeguards that protect consumers, 
communities, and the country from another financial crisis. In the wake 
of the financial crisis of 2008, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall 
Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, comprehensive legislation 
aimed at curbing the risky behavior of big banks and predatory lenders. 
Many communities in Oregon and around the country are still recovering 
from the Great Recession, and we should not roll back the regulatory 
safeguards that are allowing our economy to rebound.
  As a former consumer protection attorney, I am deeply troubled by the 
data breaches that have affected people across the country. Just last 
year, the credit-reporting agency Equifax allowed the sensitive 
information of 148 million Americans to be exposed in a data breach. 
Individuals were urged to enroll in free credit monitoring, and to 
consider placing a freeze on their credit. Instead of providing further 
protections to the millions of people who were affected, this bill will 
harm them by preempting state credit freeze laws. We should be 
strengthening consumer rights, not weakening them.
  The bill also undermines the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), 
which requires lenders to report on key data regarding home-mortgage 
lending in underserved communities. In 2015, the Consumer Financial 
Protection Bureau finalized a rule that requires lenders provide 
detailed HMDA data about their loan practices to better understand the 
gaps in access to credit that exist. This bill expands the existing 
reporting requirement exemption for certain financial institutions, and 
would exempt nearly 5,400 banks from reporting that data. As long as 
underserved communities continue to struggle to access home loans, we 
should continue to collect the data necessary to shed light on the gaps 
in accessibility.
  S. 2155 does include certain provisions to help consumers, including 
a provision making it easier for financial professionals to identify 
and report instances of financial fraud against seniors, and a 
provision to require the Social Security Administration to combat 
identity fraud. The bill also provides much-needed regulatory relief to 
our credit unions and community banks. These institutions were not 
engaging in the risky and speculative behavior that led to the 
recession, and they have always served an important role in our cities 
and towns. The bill also provides tools for community banks and credit 
unions to work with customers who are victims of data breaches. 
Although I support these commonsense reforms, the bill ultimately will 
undermine consumer protections, not bolster them. I urge my colleagues 
to oppose the legislation.

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