[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 159 (Wednesday, September 26, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H9063-H9064]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        FEDERAL RESERVE SUPERVISION TESTIMONY CLARIFICATION ACT

  Mr. TIPTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 4753) to amend the Federal Reserve Act to require the Vice 
Chairman for Supervision of the Board of Governors of the Federal 
Reserve System to provide a written report, and for other purposes, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 4753

       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 ``Federal Reserve Supervision 
     Testimony Clarification Act''.

     SEC. 2. VICE CHAIRMAN FOR SUPERVISION REPORT REQUIREMENT.

       Paragraph (12) of section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 
     U.S.C. 247b) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating such paragraph as paragraph (11); and
       (2) in such paragraph--
       (A) by striking ``shall appear'' and inserting ``shall 
     provide written testimony and appear''; and

[[Page H9064]]

       (B) by adding at the end the following: ``If, at the time 
     of any appearance described in this paragraph, the position 
     of Vice Chairman for Supervision is vacant, the Chairman or 
     their designee shall appear instead and provide the required 
     written testimony.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Colorado (Mr. Tipton) and the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Kihuen) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Colorado.


                             General Leave

  Mr. TIPTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous material on this bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Colorado?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. TIPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas).
  Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to tell my colleagues about H.R. 
4753 and urge they pass it.
  As this body knows, Congress gave the Federal Reserve much greater 
regulatory authority under Dodd-Frank. The bill established the Vice 
Chair for Supervision position to oversee those efforts. But the first 
confirmed appointee to that position took office only last year, a full 
7 years since Dodd-Frank.
  During that time, Congress received minimal testimony on regulatory 
issues from the Fed. Typically, other officials who didn't oversee 
regulatory efforts gave testimony in this regard. But the key point is, 
Dodd-Frank requires only the Vice Chair for Supervision to give that 
testimony. While we are grateful that other Fed officials decided to 
speak to Congress on regulatory issues, they didn't have to under the 
law.
  My bill would prevent that situation from arising ever again. Under 
my bill, if there is no Vice Chair for Supervision, either the Fed 
Chair or their designee will be required to give annual testimony on 
regulatory matters.
  It is that simple, and as a result, this bill passed unanimously out 
of the Financial Services Committee.
  Despite the simplicity, this bill is about the oversight authority of 
Congress and the constituents we represent. It remains vitally 
important that we and our Senate friends hear from these agencies.
  Not only that, we should hear from the officials who are very 
knowledgeable on the issues in their areas, particularly when these 
regulations have a large effect on capital and money markets. 
Otherwise, our constituents will become even more distrustful of 
government.
  Transparency is key. In fact, it is one of our greatest 
responsibilities as Members of Congress.
  My bill promotes that responsibility, and, thus, deserves to be 
passed. I thank the chairman, the ranking member, and a unanimous 
Financial Services Committee for supporting this bill. I hope my 
colleagues will follow their example and vote for the bill.
  Mr. KIHUEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4753, the Federal 
Reserve Supervision Testimony Clarification Act. I thank Mr. Lucas for 
this piece of legislation, which provides for the Chair of the Board or 
their designee to offer testimony in place of the Vice Chairman for 
Supervision, should the Vice Chair position be vacant.
  It makes good sense to codify who at the Board will testify before 
Congress on the status of the Fed's supervisory efforts, regardless of 
whether there is a person confirmed for the Vice Chair for Supervision 
or not.
  Until Randal Quarles was confirmed, the position was vacant since its 
creation in 2010, so this bill is a commonsense measure.
  With that, I urge all my colleagues to support passage of this bill, 
and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. TIPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Tipton) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 4753, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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