Federal Reserve Racial and Economic Equity Act

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Ms. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Green for yielding. I thank Chairwoman Waters for her leadership on this bill.

For far too long, consumers and businesses in the underserved communities have been blocked from accessing safe and affordable capital and credit. These systemic barriers worsen racial and economic inequality and cut off opportunity for too many Americans.

This critical bill recognizes these changes and supports efforts to eliminate racial disparities in lending.

My amendment is simple. It requires the Federal Reserve's ``Monetary Policy Report'' to include demographic information on individuals with dependent children in its analysis of labor force trends.

Why is it important? Because while the unemployment rate is near historic lows, women with children have been one of the slowest groups to return to work. Solutions like the child tax credit and affordable childcare would help working families better balance childcare responsibilities and their careers. This amendment would ensure we have the data to understand this problem and begin to address it.

I thank Chairwoman Waters, again, for her leadership.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support my amendment and the underlying bill.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source