Andy Barr

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1116, the Taking Account of Institutions with Low Operation Risk Act of 2017, which directs the Federal financial regulatory agencies to tailor their rulemakings in consideration of the risk profiles and business models of the financial institutions that are subject to such rules. It also directs the agencies to annually report to Congress regarding the specific actions that those agencies have taken to tailor their regulatory actions. I would just like to thank the ranking member of our committee for actually making the argument in favor of this legislation. She is concerned about big banks, or big banks getting benefits, or big banks not getting enough scrutiny. This bill makes sure that regulatory agencies are focused on the systemic institutions and not overwhelmed by responsibilities of regulating nonsystemically important institutions, our community banks, our regulatory-challenged institutions in our communities; not focus so much attention on imposing compliance burdens on small credit unions. That is why I support my good friend from Colorado, Representative Tipton's bill, because it gives the regulators more focus on what they should be doing instead of heaping an avalanche of red tape on nonsystemic, small community banks, which are withering on the vine under Dodd-Frank. Mr. Speaker, since 2010, the Dodd-Frank financial control law has been a disaster for small institutions, those small community banks and credit unions across our country. That law generally applied one-size- fits-all rules and regulations on financial institutions, regardless of the fact that many businesses in the same industry are substantially different. This is in recognition of the ranking member's argument that big banks are different than small banks. For the life of me, I don't know why she wouldn't be fully supportive of the bill. As a direct result of Dodd-Frank, which applies this one-size-fits- all approach, the Commonwealth of Kentucky has lost about 20 percent of its banks and credit unions, with more bank closures anticipated in the future.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill.

Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4725) to amend the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to require short form call reports for certain depository institutions.

Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and I rise today in support of H.R. 4725, the Community Bank Reporting Relief Act. Community banks were hit hard by the Great Recession and the ensuing regulations. Numerous bankers have told me they are spending more and more money and resources and time on compliance costs and less money and resources on actually providing services to customers. This is particularly alarming because these small banks are so critical to their communities. From sponsoring the local T-ball team, to lending money to a farmer for the next year's crop, to helping the single mom purchase a used car so she can get to work, these banks are involved at every level of our communities all across America, but because of overregulation, these banks are rapidly closing and consolidating. Unfortunately, the headline for banks in the Commonwealth of Kentucky is no different. Since the enactment of the Dodd-Frank financial control law, we have seen a 20 percent drop in the number of banks in our State and there has been a dearth of charters for new banks. In fact, since 2010, there have been only a few de novo charters for banks nationwide. Now, some people say that consolidation and mergers have been a long- term trend for the last 30 years and, therefore, not related to the recent uptick in regulations unrelated to Dodd-Frank, but they are clearly not seeing the bigger picture, because even after mergers, many branches in rural and other underserved communities are closing, leaving many Kentuckians to drive a town or two over just to get to the nearest bank. It is not just about a long-term trend of consolidation. There have been literally no new charters, whereas before the Dodd-Frank law was enacted, there were many, many new charters every year; and since the Dodd-Frank law was enacted, no new charters. So the consolidation trend has gotten a lot worse since this avalanche of red tape coming out of Washington, D.C., and that is having a very negative impact on rural and underserved American communities. While new technologies are helping bring banking services to anyone with an internet connection, many people still prefer the personal one- on-one banking style that they grew up with and the personal interaction often that helps the banks themselves understand the exact needs of their customers. The Dodd-Frank law was almost 2,300 pages and required dozens of agencies to create new regulations or revise existing ones. As a result, these agencies issued hundreds of regulations and, according to the Mercatus Center, the law placed about 28,000 new restrictions on the banking industry, effectively doubling the number of regulatory restrictions in title 12 of the Code of Federal Regulation to more than 52,000. Although not part of the Dodd-Frank rush of regulations, a growing number of banks have cited the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council's, or FFIEC, Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income--or call reports, as they are commonly called--as too burdensome. Each quarter, all national banks, State member banks, insured State nonmember banks, and savings associations are required to file these call reports. The reports contain approximately 50 pages of financial data on each bank, including their assets, liabilities, capital accounts, expenses, and income. However, these reports are very burdensome for community banks with limited resources and offer little value to the regulators relative to the last quarter's report. Thankfully, H.R. 4725, the Community Bank Reporting Relief Act, is fighting back against the bureaucratic nightmare of complying with these 52,000 restrictions by allowing banks with less than $5 billion in consolidated assets to file their call reports every 6 months as opposed to every 3 months. The impact of this regulatory change will be a huge development for banks across the country. Now they will spend less time on call reports and more time on actually helping customers. This means more capital will be flowing into our local economies, spurring job growth and economic development, while making a real difference in the lives of Americans trying to access affordable capital to buy a new home or car or start a business. I want to thank my good friend from Illinois, Congressman Randy Hultgren, for his leadership and for introducing this important legislation. Due to his leadership, this great community bank bill is being considered as a suspension on the floor today. That means that there is a great chance that this bill will build on its unanimous support earned during the House Financial Services Committee markup and will be a bipartisan provision in the Senate Banking chairman's Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, which is expected to pass out of the Senate very soon. In addition to Congressman Hultgren, I want to thank Chairman Hensarling and Ranking Member Waters for their hard work on this critical legislation, and I urge my colleagues to vote for H.R. 4725, the Community Bank Reporting Relief Act. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 6 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hultgren), the sponsor of the legislation and the vice chairman of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Securities, and Investments.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Let me once again thank the gentleman from Illinois for his tireless advocacy on behalf of our community financial institutions and providing some commonsense, basic relief to those institutions so that, instead of dealing with paperwork, they could actually better serve their customers and grow our local economies. General Leave

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2226) to amend the Truth in Lending Act to provide a safe harbor from certain requirements related to qualified mortgages for residential mortgage loans held on an originating depository institution's portfolio, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill.

Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, H.R. 2226, the Portfolio Lending and Mortgage Access Act, represents a very simple solution to a significant policy challenge facing our economy: how to expand access to mortgage credit without replicating the accumulation of excess risk in the mortgage- backed securities market like we witnessed in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis. My legislation achieves both goals by extending the qualified mortgage legal safe harbor to small creditors, banks, and credit unions with total consolidated assets of $10 billion or less, that originate and hold residential mortgage loans in portfolio, rather than selling or securitizing them, allowing those lenders to satisfy Dodd-Frank's ability-to-repay rule. Such a policy would actually incentivize private sector risk retention--a goal of the Dodd-Frank Act itself--and mark a return to relationship lending in which a bank or credit union can tailor products to a consumer's needs and credit risk, without running afoul of one-size-fits-all government requirements. Under CFPB regulations, only government-defined qualified mortgages enjoy a presumption that a lender has satisfied the Dodd-Frank law's ability-to-repay requirements. Small banks and credit unions have been disproportionately impacted by these rules, given their reliance upon residential mortgage lending and greater involvement in small dollar or balloon loans that run afoul of current QM regulations. It is no surprise that Harvard researchers have found that, since Dodd-Frank's passage, community banks have lost market share at a rate double that experienced between 2006 and 2010, a period including the entirety of the financial crisis. It is also not a surprise that many small community financial institutions have testified in front of the House Financial Services Committee and to many of my colleagues that they have simply left the mortgage business altogether because of the difficulties associated with the QM rule as currently constructed. Indeed, a third of the National Association of Realtors survey respondents reported being unable to close mortgages due to a requirement of the qualified mortgage rule. Residential mortgages were the product or service most often identified by surveyed banks as a candidate for discontinuation as a result of Dodd-Frank. A recent study by the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University documents the falling share of bank participation in mortgage originations. Everyone agrees, especially after the 2008 financial crisis, that a borrower should be required to show a demonstrable ability to repay. The only question is: Who is in the best position to make that determination--a community banker with a professional and, perhaps, even a personal relationship with the borrower who has full view of that borrower's character, creditworthiness, financial situation, and who is willing to assume 100 percent of the downside risk of default; or is it an unaccountable, unelected bureaucrat in Washington, D.C., who literally knows absolutely nothing about that borrower? By bearing 100 percent of the risk, financial institutions have every incentive to make sure that a borrower can afford to repay a loan. Banks and credit unions would have more than just skin in the game. Under this legislation, their interests would align perfectly with that of a borrower. As one witness in front of our committee testified: ``A financial institution that retains a loan's credit and interest-rate risk has a keen interest in engaging in thorough, sound underwriting to determine the borrower's ability to repay. Allowing a financial institution to make a customer-specific lending decision on a loan it intends to hold in its portfolio can be a more effective way of protecting consumers than regulatory attempts to micromanage mortgage terms with inflexible standards.'' No less than Barney Frank, former chairman of the committee, endorsed this concept in a hearing before this committee, saying he ``would like the main safeguard against bad loans to be risk retention, because that leaves the decision in the hands of whoever is making the loan,'' the CFPB also, itself, acknowledged this key point in its own rulemaking, where it recognized that portfolio lenders ``have strong incentives to carefully consider whether a consumer will be able to repay a portfolio loan at least in part because the small creditor retains the risk of default.'' This legislation also presents a viable alternative to the ``originate to distribute'' mortgage lending model that contributed to the subprime mortgage meltdown and bubble in residential real estate and taxpayer bailouts. The result is expanded access to mortgage credit without additional risk to the financial system or to the taxpayer. In fact, this is particularly important for young families and first- time home buyers, who tend to have difficulty meeting the ability-to- repay requirements due to circumstances, such as significant student loan debt, but who are otherwise creditworthy. I have been working on this legislation for 5 years now, and I am happy to announce that, this year, we had a bipartisan breakthrough. That is because, at the committee markup, I offered an amendment that limited the scope of this bill to financial institutions with less than $10 billion in assets. And my distinguished colleague, Representative Capuano, offered a technical amendment that enhanced the legislation by clarifying a few key provisions. I am pleased to report that, because of those two amendments, the Portfolio Lending and Mortgage Access Act passed with unanimous support in the committee and is now on the floor today for consideration. I want to thank Chairman Hensarling, Ranking Member Waters, Representative Capuano, the Kentucky Bankers Association, the Kentucky Credit Union League, the American Bankers Association, the Independent Community Bankers of America, the Credit Union National Association, the National Association of Federal Credit Unions, the National Association of Home Builders, and the United States Chamber of Commerce for their hard work on this important legislation. If passed by the House, it is my hope that the Portfolio Lending and Mortgage Access Act moves quickly through the Senate. Eleven of our Democratic colleagues in the upper Chamber support this exact language, which is in Chairman Crapo's community financial institution relief bill. Together, Republicans and Democrats can deliver on the regulatory relief that many of us in this body have promised to our constituents that will enable more of them to buy the home of their dreams. Madam Speaker, I invite all of my colleagues to vote for this important pro-homeownership legislation that perfectly aligns lender and borrower interests to the benefit of America. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I want to thank my friend, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Kildee), for his constructive comments, his support. And the gentleman is absolutely correct. He engaged with me and my colleagues who were cosponsoring this legislation in a very constructive manner. He made valuable contributions, along with Mr. Capuano and the ranking member. Several other members on the other side of the aisle, Mr. Perlmutter, for example, offered his thoughtful comments as well. I appreciate the support, the bipartisan support, working through a compromise to get this legislation to where it is today, so I thank the gentleman for that. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Emmer), who is also a sponsor of this legislation and a distinguished member of the Committee on Financial Services.

Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hultgren), who is also, I believe, a sponsor of the legislation.

Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. In closing, let me just reiterate that this legislation solves two problems. It solves the problem of responsible expansion of access to mortgage credit, access to that American Dream of home ownership; and, at the same time, preventing the mistakes that led to the 2008 financial crisis, the originate to distribute model where originators of mortgages had no skin in the game and they allowed those mortgages to be poorly underwritten or not underwritten at all, with no documentation, and then securitized and sold into the secondary market, really without any eye towards the consumer and the borrower's ability to repay. Everybody in this institution, as evidenced by the bipartisan work here, we all recognize that a borrower should demonstrate an ability to repay that loan, but the crux of this legislation, at the core of this legislation is a recognition that a local community banker, a local credit union, a lender with a personal relationship with a borrower is in the best position to determine whether or not that borrower, that prospective homeowner, can repay that loan. When there is risk retention, when that lender is charged with the responsibility of maintaining that loan in portfolio, the lender is much more incentivized to properly underwrite that loan and make sure that that customer, that borrower, that future homeowner, has a demonstrable ability to repay. I think it is a much better substitute to a one-size-fits-all credit box from, frankly, bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., who have no eye towards the creditworthiness of that particular borrower. We have worked with our friends on the other side of the aisle to make this a bipartisan piece of legislation limiting the size of the institutions that can access this regulatory relief. But, clearly, when community financial institutions, bankers from around the country, every part of the country, are saying that they see the QM rule as not ``qualified mortgages,'' but as ``quitting mortgages;'' and when we see an unnecessary constraint of mortgage credit; and when the National Association of Realtors are reporting that they are unable to close mortgages due to this onerous qualified mortgage rule, clearly the pendulum has swung too far. So, yes, we needed some reforms in the aftermath of the financial crisis. This QM rule went too far. This is a recalibration of that. And this is important regulatory relief for our community financial institutions that will inure to the benefit of the American home-buying public, and it will do so in a responsible way, providing a viable alternative to the originate to distribute practices that really led to the financial crisis. Madam Speaker, let me just make one final observation, and that is to give credit to the administration. The Department of the Treasury, in their findings and recommendations in their report on banks and credit unions, they recognized that this was a problem in the mortgage lending space and they made a recommendation also to increase the portfolio lending safe harbor to institutions with $10 billion in assets or lower; and that, as they argued, will accommodate loans made and retained by small depository institutions, provide that needed regulatory relief to our community financial institutions, and also expand access to mortgage credit in a responsible way. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleagues for their support. At this time I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Budd), a member of the Financial Services Committee.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4768) to require the President to develop a national strategy to combat the financial networks of transnational organized criminals, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4768, the National Strategy for Combating the Financing of Transnational Criminal Organizations Act. I want to, at the outset, applaud and thank my colleague Mr. Kustoff from Tennessee for his leadership on this important legislation and for bringing this solution to the Congress and this solution to the American people. As Members of Congress, our number one responsibility is the national security and the well-being of the American people. Unfortunately, transnational criminal organizations threaten the safety of Americans, and we must do everything in our power to stop them. Transnational criminal organizations, or TCOs as they are called for short, are engaged in illegal business ventures around the world such as money laundering, cybercrime, and the trafficking of drugs, weapons, endangered species, and even human beings. While TCOs may not be motivated by a particular radical, political, or religions ideology, they are motivated by money, and they will stop at nothing to get it. According to a 2011 report published by the Obama administration, entitled, ``Strategy to Combat Transnational Organized Crime,'' TCOs have dramatically ramped up their size, scope, and influence, and are even teaming up with terrorist organizations and corrupt foreign officials to expand their networks and conceal their illicit financial assets. These TCOs cost the Western Hemisphere about 3.5 percent of gross domestic product annually, and they generate for themselves around $870 billion, which is roughly the value of the world's largest company, Apple. President Trump, on February 9, 2017, issued Executive Order 13773 on ``Enforcing Federal Law with Respect to Transnational Criminal Organizations and Preventing International Trafficking.'' It states that TCOs in the form of transnational drug cartels have a stronghold in America and threaten the safety of the American people. From former President Obama to current President Trump, TCOs are recognized as a major risk to national security. That is why I am very pleased to see that my good friend from Tennessee, Congressman David Kustoff, has introduced H.R. 4768, the National Strategy for Combating the Financing of Transnational Criminal Organizations Act. This legislation requires the President, the Treasury Secretary, financial regulators, and other appropriate officials to create a national strategy to combat TCOs and their illicit use of financial networks. Specifically, the legislation requires them to identify and assess the largest TCO threats to the United States. It also mandates that the strategy include the identification of the people or groups that facilitate access to financial networks for the TCOs through laundering assets, such as, real estate, art and antiquities, smuggling bulk cash, exploitation of shell companies, and the use of covert cryptocurrencies and other cyber technologies. The legislation also requires the strategy to include long-term and short-term goals, an explanation of how goals will be integrated into existing national security apparatuses, and, if needed, suggest legislative and regulatory changes to better fight against TCOs. This legislation passed the House Committee on Financial Services with unanimous support in January, and it is my hope that it passes with unanimous support today on the House floor. Mr. Speaker, in addition to Congressman Kustoff, I thank Chairman Hensarling and Ranking Member Waters for their hard work on this issue. Together we can, in a bipartisan way, empower our government to better fight transnational criminal organizations, making the American people safer and our economy stronger. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for H.R. 4768, the National Strategy for Combating the Financing of Transnational Criminal Organizations Act. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Kustoff), a member of the House Financial Services Committee and a former United States Attorney from the Western District of Tennessee, who has brought considerable prosecutorial experience in drafting and authoring this legislation.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Rothfus), the vice chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Gaetz).

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. I, once again, thank my colleagues for supporting this legislation. In particular, I thank the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Kustoff) for his leadership on this issue. I would note, also, in addition to all of the many sound and persuasive arguments that have been offered for why we need this legislation, this National Strategy for Combating the Financing of Transnational Criminal Organizations Act, the National Fraternal Order of Police has endorsed this legislation, and I include in the Record their letter. National Fraternal Order of Police, Washington, DC, February 15, 2018. Hon. Paul D. Ryan, Speaker of the House, House of Representatives, Washington,

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, as a Member of Congress representing a State that has been ravaged by heroin and opioid addiction, I can't think of a more important thing for this Congress to do than to develop a national strategy for combating these transnational gangs that are preying on our communities. Once again, I commend Mr. Kustoff for his leadership in this area and in this effort and in this fight. I applaud my colleagues for supporting the legislation on both sides of the aisle. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Roe for his tireless leadership as a veteran himself, as a physician, and for his exceptional leadership on veterans issues as chairman of the committee. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4533, to designate the healthcare system of the Department of Veterans Affairs in Lexington, Kentucky, my hometown, as the Lexington VA Health Care System and to individually designate medical facilitates located at 1101 Veterans Drive in Lexington, Kentucky, as the Troy Bowling Campus, a campus where my own grandfather, a World War II veteran, spent his final days; and to designate the Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare Center located at 2250 Leestown Road in Lexington, Kentucky, as the Franklin R. Sousley Campus. Born in Hilltop, Kentucky, Marine Private First Class Franklin R. Sousley landed on Iwo Jima on Friday, February 19, 1945, and he actively fought in the battle for the islands. During these intense fighting moments, members of the United States Armed Forces secured Mount Suribachi and hoisted a United States flag on top of the summit. On February 23, 1945, Private First Class Sousley, alongside five other brave U.S. servicemembers, raised a larger U.S. flag so it could be seen over the island. The iconic photograph taken of these six marines while they raised the U.S. flag attached to a heavy Japanese pipe soon became the immortalized symbol of American bravery, perseverance, and sacrifice endured by members of the United States Armed Forces during the intense battles of World War II. Tragically, Private First Class Sousley was killed in combat by a Japanese sniper around Cayetano Point on March 21, 1945, and was finally laid to rest at the Elizaville Cemetery in Fleming County, Kentucky. I have been to that grave site many times. The VFW in Fleming County always, on an annual basis, goes out there to pay their respects to the Sousley family right at that grave site. Private Troy Bowling bravely fought at Iwo Jima. While attempting to secure Mount Suribachi, his unit came under intense and concentrated fire, as was previously said, completely overwhelming his unit. Two projectiles struck Private Bowling in the chest and leg, leaving him critically wounded on the battlefield. At that moment, Bowling said: ``As I lay bleeding on the black sands of Iwo Jima, I looked to the heavens, promising that, if I survived, I would serve mankind for the rest of my life.'' Troy's unit received the Presidential Unit Citation, and he received the Purple Heart. In keeping faith with his commitment to God made during that battle, Private Bowling, whom I had the honor of meeting on several occasions, devoted the next 66 years of his life by giving over 78,000 hours of volunteer service to others at the Lexington VA Medical Center, and he rose through the ranks within the Disabled American Veterans organization, holding nearly every position, including state commander. He also received a Lifetime Service Achievement Award from the Department of Veterans Affairs and was nominated and selected to be inducted into the Kentucky Veterans Hall of Fame for his lifetime of service to veterans. These two deserving veterans, Franklin Sousley and Troy Bowling, embody the best of American ideals, values, and commitment to serving others, never abandoning the marine motto of ``semper fidelis,'' always faithful. Therefore, it is fitting that we rename the Lexington VA Medical Center campuses during the 73rd anniversary of the landing of the U.S. forces on the beaches of Iwo Jima and honor these two servicemembers for their service and sacrifice to our country and to our veterans. I would like to thank the members of the Sixth Congressional District Veterans Coalition for bringing the idea for this legislation to my attention. I would also like to thank my colleagues in the Kentucky congressional delegation--Leader Mitch McConnell, Senator Rand Paul, Congressman Hal Rogers, Congressman John Yarmuth, Congressman Brett Guthrie, Congressman Thomas Massie, and Congressman James Comer--for their support as well. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I urge my colleagues in the House to support the passage of this meaningful legislation honoring veterans in Kentucky.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Virginia for his efforts, and I am willing to accept his amendment. The language he proposes would ensure that the Treasury keeps Congress updated on the World Bank's efforts to ensure that certain visa holders at the World Bank are aware of the provisions of current law. This addition to the bill is unobjectionable. I am pleased to support it. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.