U.S. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) Introduces the Reforming Finance for Local Economies Act

Press Release

U.S. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today introduced the Reforming Finance for Local Economies Act. This legislation will drastically help local financial institutions, especially smaller community banks and credit unions, which are suffering under the weight of the Obama administration's Dodd-Frank regulations.

"Community banks and credit unions were not responsible for the 2008 financial crisis. However, they are wrongly bearing the brunt of the regulatory burden imposed by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010," said Sen. Kennedy. "My bill, the Reforming Finance for Local Economies Act, seeks to rectify this injustice by exempting community banks and credit unions with assets of less than $10 billion from Dodd-Frank's regulations. Our community financial institutions need to get back to doing what they do best, which is helping our local economies grow."

Dodd-Frank was enacted to prevent another 2008-like banking crisis by strengthening federal government regulation of finance. Yet smaller banks are being smothered under the weight of Dodd-Frank. Community banks are paying $4.5 billion annually in compliance costs because of Dodd-Frank, causing more than 1,700 U.S. banks to close since 2010. The cost of these regulations has driven small banks to sell to or merge with larger banks. That eliminates jobs at the community institutions and reduces capital available to job creators.

Sen. Kennedy's bill, the Reforming Finance for Local Economies Act, would simply exempt community banks and credit unions with assets of less than $10 billion from Dodd-Frank. Sen. Kennedy details his bill further in his op-ed for The Wall Street Journal.

Source