Federal Reserve Supervision Testimony Clarification Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I am here today to tell my colleagues about H.R. 974 and urge they pass it.

This is a bill about congressional oversight, pure and simple. As this body knows, Dodd-Frank gave the Federal Reserve greater regulatory authority and established the Vice Chairman for Supervision position to oversee those efforts; but the first confirmed appointee to that position took office in 2017, a full 7 years after Dodd-Frank.

During that time, Congress received minimal testimony on regulatory issues from the Fed. Typically, other officials who didn't oversee the regulatory efforts gave testimony in this regard. But the key point is, Dodd-Frank requires only the Vice Chairman for Supervision to give that testimony.

While we are grateful that other Federal officials decided to speak to Congress on regulatory issues, they didn't have to, under the law.

I introduced this bill last Congress as a way to prevent that situation from arising ever again. Under the bill, if there is no Vice Chairman for Supervision, either the Fed Chair or their designee will be required to give annual testimony on regulatory matters. It is that simple. As a result, this bill passed unanimously out of the Financial Services Committee last Congress.

As I said, this bill is about the oversight authority of Congress and the other constituents we represent.

It remains vitally important that we and our Senate friends hear from knowledgeable regulatory officials at these agencies, particularly when these regulations have a large effect on the capital money markets; otherwise, our constituents will become even more distrustful of government.

Transparency is key. In fact, it is one of the largest responsibilities of the Members of Congress. This promotes that responsibility and, thus, deserves to be passed.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate Mr. Gottheimer's willingness to bring this bill to the floor. I thank the chairwoman and the ranking member for supporting this bill. I hope my colleagues will follow this example and vote in favor.

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