Legislative action – including many matters of interest to credit unions – is set to slow down this week following the death of former President George H.W. Bush.
With the federal government – including the National Credit Union Administration – set to be closed Wed. Dec. 5 for a national day of mourning, Bush’s passing puts much of the week’s legislative and regulatory schedule into question, with several hearings set for Wednesday likely to be postponed or cancelled outright. Those include:
- Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's testimony to Congress was canceled and has yet to be rescheduled
- The Senate Banking Committee's hearing titled "Oversight of Pilot Programs at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac" is slated for Wednesday and has yet to be rescheduled.
- A House Judiciary Committee's transparency and accountability hearing on Google and its respective data collection modalities has also been postponed, with a new date yet to be announced.
On Thursday, Tower Federal Credit Union CEO Rick Stafford is expected to testify on before the House Financial Services Committee at a hearing examining housing finance reform. Stafford will testify on behalf of the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions.
This week could also finally see a full Senate vote on Kathy Kraninger’s nomination to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
In other CFPB news, the bureau’s Credit Union Advisory Council will hold its quarterly meeting this week where the body is scheduled to discuss artificial intelligence in financial services. Some credit unions are utilizing those technologies,
Lastly, partial government funding expires Friday, leaving Congress just days away from a potential government shutdown if Democrats and Republicans are unable to resolve the funding agreement.
Lawmakers are considering a one-week spending bill, or a short-term continuing resolution, to prevent the shutdown, according to officials from NAFCU and CUNA.
