House Republicans Delivering Results for American People

Floor Speech

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Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend from the First District of Utah for yielding.

His magnificent career before he came to Congress in business and in national security make us all proud. We are so grateful that he is our vice chair of the Conference, and that he leads us in bringing the good work of Republicans to the House floor every week so the American citizens see what we are doing and hear from us directly.

Aside from his beautiful family, the best thing about him is that he is an Eagle Scout. People are still talking about his Eagle Scout project in Utah. I thank him for letting me share some time with him.

Madam Speaker, I come to the House floor tonight to also express my deep dismay for the plethora of midnight rulemakings that we saw at the end of the Biden-Harris administration.

Last December, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott and I were clear when we sent letters to outgoing Biden-Harris regulators and department heads urging them to put their pens down. Don't issue any more rulemakings or guidance. Don't sue anybody. Their time has come to an end.

What did we see in response? We saw an avalanche of relentless rulemakings, one after another after another.

Madam Speaker, the worst offender was former head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra.

Madam Speaker, I think he became the poster child of midnight rulemaking renegades. Chopra never put his pen down. Under his leadership, the CFPB went full steam ahead with their reckless rulemakings. They capped fees on overdraft services, which is just another form of price control that harms customers who deserve access to financial choices and financial options when it comes to managing their household budgets.

He issued a rule to hide medical debt owed from credit reports, which will drive up the costs of all Americans' access to credit and to seeking healthcare. It will have a devastating long-term impact on consumers.

Mr. Chopra initiated lawsuits one after another before he left office.

Mark my words, Madam Speaker, we are going to fight to overturn these erroneous actions. The House passed my colleague Representative Andy Biggs of Arizona's bill today that ensures Congress can exercise appropriate oversight of these kinds of executive rulemakings.

It would allow multiple agency rules to be considered en bloc, that is in a group, as a single Congressional Review Act resolution if the rulings took place at the end of a Presidential term. I think this is a terrific idea from our friend and colleague Representative Andy Biggs.

It is an important step in fighting back to rectify the misguided rulemakings at the end of the Biden-Harris administration, and I thank him for leading this effort.

As the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, I am committed to my work with Chairman Tim Scott across the Capitol in the Senate, as well as the Trump administration, to rightsize the regulatory burden facing America's financial providers.

When we do that, we will preserve safety and soundness absolutely, but we will also increase the access to capital to our families, to our businesses that need it. Together, we will facilitate faster and stronger economic growth in the years ahead.

Madam Speaker, I appreciate my friend from Utah and I thank him for the time.

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