PH FedACTion: Financial Regulatory Updates
Daily Financial Regulation Update -- Saturday, March 20, 2021
March 20, 2021
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Administration Changes
Appointments/Confirmation Hearings
Department of the Treasury – Janet Yellen (effective January 26, 2021)
- Treasury Announces Key Staff Appointment (March 2, 2021)
- Statement from Secretary Yellen on President Biden’s Intention to Nominate Key Roles for Treasury (March 11, 2021)
- Treasury Announces Key Staff Appointments (March 16, 2021)
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – Rohit Chopra (Nominee)
- Acting Director: Dave Uejio (January 20, 2020)
- Confirmation hearing held on March 2, 2021
- Committee approval March 10, 2021
- Toomey Opening Statement During Chopra, Gensler Nomination Hearing (March 2, 2021)
Securities and Exchange Commission – Gary Gensler (Nominee)
- Acting Chair: Allison Herren Lee (January 21, 2021)
- Confirmation hearing held on March 2, 2021
- Committee approval March 10, 2021
Small Business Administration – Isabel Guzman (effective March 16, 2021)
- Senate Confirms Nomination of Isabel Guzman to be SBA Administrator (March 16, 2021)
- Statement of House Committee on Small Business Chair Nydia M. Velazquez (March 16, 2021)
Commodity Futures Trade Commission
National Credit Union Administration – Todd M. Harper
Department of Housing and Urban Development – Marcia Fudge (effective March 10, 2021)
- Marcia Fudge Sworn in As Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (March 10, 2021)
- Statement by Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Chair Sherrod Brown (March 10, 2021)
- Statement by Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Ranking Member Pat Toomey (March 10, 2021)
- Statement by House Committee on Financial Services Chair Maxine Waters (March 10, 2021)
Department of Education – Dr. Miguel Cardona (effective March 2, 2011)
Congress
Click here to view the full text of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), Enacted March 27, 2020.
Click here to view the full text of the Paycheck Protection Program Increase Act of 2020, Enacted April 24, 2020.
Click here to view the full text of the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020, Enacted June 5, 2020.
Click here to view the full text of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Enacted December 27, 2020.
Click here to view the full text of the American Rescue Plan of 2021, Enacted March 11, 2021.
Click here to view a running list of proposed legislation from the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, House Committee on Financial Services, and House Committee on Small Business.
Federal Agencies
Department of the Treasury
Treasury Releases Fact Sheet on American Rescue Plan
March 19, 2021
The U.S. Department of the Treasury released a Fact Sheet entitled, “The American Rescue Plan Will Deliver Immediate Economic Relief to Families”.
Federal Reserve Board
Bank Regulatory Agencies Announce Temporary Supplementary Leverage Ratio Changes to Expire as Scheduled
March 19, 2021
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency announced that the temporary change to the supplementary leverage ratio, or SLR, for depository institutions issued on May 15, 2020, will expire as scheduled on March 31, 2021. Additionally, the FRB announced that the temporary change to the SLR for bank holding companies will also expire as scheduled on March 31, 2021, and that the FRB will shortly seek comment on measures to adjust the SLR.
Federal Reserve Board Publishes Research Papers on Varied Topics
March 19, 2021
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System’s Divisions of Research & Statistics and Monetary Affairs, as part of the Finance and Economics Discussion Series, published several economic papers.
- Full Paper - "The Ways the Cookie Crumbles . . ."
- Full Paper - "The Macro Effects of Climate Policy Uncertainty"
- Full Paper - “Liquidity Networks, Interconnectedness, and Interbank Information Asymmetry”
- Full Paper - “Consumption-Based Asset Pricing When Consumers Make Mistakes”
Federal Reserve Bank of New York
FRBNY Staff Report Examines Inflation Expectations and Risk Premia in Emerging Bond Markets
March 19, 2021
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released a Staff Report entitled, “Inflation Expectations and Risk Premia in Emerging Bond Markets: Evidence from Mexico”.
FRBNY Releases Monthly U.S. Economy Snapshot
March 19, 2021
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released its U.S. Economy in a Snapshot presentation (Snapshot) for March 2021. According to the Snapshot, consumer spending rose in January 2021; real expenditures on goods increased 5% while spending on services was roughly unchanged; overall spending was down 2% over the year; and income increased more than spending, pushing up the personal saving rate to a high level.
FRBNY Releases Monthly Underlying Inflation Gauge
March 19, 2021
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released the Underlying Inflation Gauge (UIG) for March 2021. The UIG captures sustained movements in inflation from information contained in a broad set of price, real activity and financial data.
Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
FRBBOS Releases Report on Main Street Lending Program
March 19, 2021
The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston released a report entitled, “Uptake of the Main Street Lending Program.” The report’s authors find that, overall, the Main Street Lending Program seems to have added substantially to the supply of credit to medium-sized borrowers, especially those with less than $50 million in earnings, that likely had limited access to large banks.
Securities and Exchange Commission
Commissioners Peirce, Roisman Deliver Remarks at Asset Management Advisory Committee Meeting
March 19, 2021
Hester M. Peirce and Elad L. Roisman, Commissioners on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), both delivered remarks on ESG and related issues at a meeting of the SEC’s Asset Management Advisory Committee.
U.S. Small Business Administration
SBA Launches Portal to Begin Accepting Shuttered Venue Operators Grant Applications
March 19, 2021
The U.S. Small Business Administration launched a page for the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant application portal, in anticipation of opening applications for the much-anticipated economic relief program on April 8.
- Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) Application Portal
- News Release
- Statement by House Committee on Small Business Chair Nydia Velazquez
International
European Banking Authority
EBA Acknowledges Adoption by European Commission of Standards on Institutions’ Public Disclosures
March 19, 2021
The European Banking Authority acknowledged the adoption by the European Commission of the Implementing Act laying down implementing technical standards on institutions’ Pillar 3 disclosures.