PH FedACTion: Financial Regulatory Updates
Daily Financial Regulation Update -- Thursday, December 23, 2021
December 23, 2021
FedACTion Task Force
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PH Client Alerts
Click here to read more from our Coronavirus series.
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 the full text of the PPP Extension Act of 2021, Enacted March 30, 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
Federal Reserve Board
Federal Reserve Issues Update to Payments Study
December 22, 2021
The Federal Reserve Board issued an update to the Federal Reserve Payments Study to include findings from recent survey data. The findings highlight changes in card payments and increased adoption of innovative payment methods following the emergence of COVID-19.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Paper: The Effects of Leverage on Investments in Maintenance: Evidence from Apartments
December 22, 2021
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York published a paper titled, "The Effects of Leverage on Investments in Maintenance: Evidence from Apartments."
Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
Paper: Corporate Finance and the Transmission of Shocks to the Real Economy
December 22, 2021
The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston published a paper titled, "Corporate Finance and the Transmission of Shocks to the Real Economy."
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
CFTC Staff Revises No-Action Letters Regarding Market Participants Transitioning from LIBOR
December 22, 2021
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced that the Division of Clearing and Risk (DCR), Division of Market Oversight (DMO), and Market Participants Division (MPD) have each issued revised no-action letters to swap dealers and other market participants related to the industry-wide initiative to transition from swaps that reference the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) and other interbank offered rates to swaps that reference alternative benchmarks.
CFTC Staff Extends Temporary No-Action Letter to Derivatives Clearing Organizations Regarding Amended Daily Reporting Requirements
December 22, 2021
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission's Division of Clearing and Risk (DCR) announced that it is extending the temporary no-action letter previously issued to registered derivatives clearing organizations (DCOs) regarding the amended daily reporting requirements in CFTC Regulation 39.19.
CFTC Staff Issues No-Action Letter Regarding Certain Reporting Requirements for Swaps Transitioning from Certain LIBORs to Risk-Free Rates
December 22, 2021
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission's Division of Data (DOD) issued a no-action letter regarding certain Part 43 and Part 45 swap reporting obligations for swaps transitioning under the International Swaps and Derivatives Association LIBOR fallback provisions from referencing certain London Interbank Offered Rates (LIBORs) to referencing risk-free rates (RFRs) following the cessation or non-representativeness of those LIBORs on December 31, 2021.
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
Notice: FinCEN Announces Amendments to BSA Civil Penalty Regulations Relating to Reporting Foreign Financial Accounts and Transactions
December 22, 2021
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is amending the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) civil penalty regulations relating to the requirements for reporting foreign financial accounts and for reporting transactions with foreign financial agencies. The amendments remove civil penalty language that has been made obsolete with the enactment of statutory revisions to the computation of a monetary penalty, which include provision for a greater maximum penalty for willful violations.
Federal Housing Finance Agency
FHFA Finalizes 2022-2024 Single-Family and 2022 Multifamily Housing Goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
December 22, 2021
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) issued a final rule for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that establishes the benchmark levels for each of the single-family housing goals and subgoals for 2022 through 2024 and establishes the benchmark levels for the multifamily housing goals for 2022.
Ginnie Mae
Report: The Ginnie Mae Global Market Analysis Report
December 22, 2021
Ginnie Mae published its November 2021 Global Markets Analysis Report.
U.S. Department of Education
Student Loan Repayment Pause Extended Through May 1, 2022
December 22, 2021
The U.S. Department of Education announced a 90-day extension of the pause on student loan repayment, interest, and collections through May 1, 2022. The extension will allow an assessment of the impacts of the Omicron variant to Covid-19 on student borrowers and provide additional time for borrowers to plan for the resumption of payments and reduce the risk of delinquency and defaults after restart. The Department plans to continue its work to transition borrowers smoothly back into repayment, including by improving student loan servicing.
International
European Commission
Fair Taxation: Commission Proposes Swift Transposition of the International Agreement on Minimum Taxation of Multinationals
December 22, 2021
The European Commission proposed a directive ensuring a minimum effective tax rate for the global activities of large multinational groups.
Administration Changes
Appointments/Confirmation Hearings
U.S. Department of the Treasury - Janet Yellen (effective January 26, 2021)
Federal Reserve Board
- Statement by Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome H. Powell on his nomination by President Biden (November 22, 2021)
- Statement by Governor Lael Brainard on her nomination by President Biden (November 22, 2021)
- Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen Statement on Federal Reserve Nominations (November 22, 2021)
- Statement by Secretary Walsh on Federal Reserve Nominations (November 22, 2021)
- Brown Statement on the Renomination of Jerome Powell for Fed Chair (November 22, 2021)
- Toomey Statement on Renomination of Jerome Powell for Fed Chair (November 22, 2021)
- Brown Applauds Biden's Nomination of Governor Lael Brainard for Vice Chair (November 22, 2021)
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau - Rohit Chopra (effective October 12, 2021)
- Statement by House Committee on Financial Services Chair Maxine Waters on Rohit Chopra's Confirmation (September 30, 2021)
- CSBS Statement on Rohit Chopra Confirmation as CFPB Director (September 30, 2021)
Securities and Exchange Commission - Gary Gensler (effective April 17, 2021)
Small Business Administration - Isabella Casillas Guzman (effective March 16, 2021)
- Statement by Administrator Guzman Applauding President Biden's Appointees to Lead SBA Regional Offices (November 18, 2021)
- Statement by Administrator Guzman Applauding President Biden's New Appointees to the U.S. Small Business Administration (December 6, 2021)
Commodity Futures Trade Commission – Rostin Behnam (effective December 17, 2021)
- Kristin Johnson, Nominee for Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (September 13, 2021)
- Christy Goldsmith Romero, Nominee for Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (September 13, 2021)
- U.S. Senate Unanimously Confirms Behnam as Chairman (December 17, 2021)
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
National Credit Union Administration - Todd M. Harper
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development - Marcia Fudge (effective March 10, 2021)
- Adrianne Todman Sworn in as Deputy Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (June 15, 2021)
- Statement from Secretary Marcia L. Fudge on the Confirmation of Alanna McCargo (December 15, 2021)
Federal Housing Finance Agency – Sandra L. Thompson
- Brown Statement on the Selection of Sandra Thompson to Lead FHFA (December 14, 2021)
- Waters Applauds Biden's Nomination of Sandra L. Thompson as Permanent Director of the FHFA (December 14, 2021)
- Statement from HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge on the Nomination of Sandra Thompson (December 14, 2021)
U.S. Department of Education - Dr. Miguel Cardona (effective March 2, 2021)
- Secretary Cardona Statement on Confirmation of Education Department Officials Brown, Rodriguez and Graham (October 6, 2021)
- Statement from Secretary Miguel Cardona on the Confirmation of Catherine Lhamon as Assistant Secretary for the Office for Civil Rights (October 20, 2021)
- Statement by U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona on the Confirmation of Sandra Bruce as the Department's Inspector General (December 3, 2021)
- Statement by U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona on President Biden's Nomination of LaWanda Toney (December 16, 2021)