releases: http://www.sasse.senate.gov//public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=B8787E71-AC7C-4F57-A999-79EA8E6C3987
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| http://www.sasse.senate.gov//public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=B8787E71-AC7C-4F57-A999-79EA8E6C3987 | Sasse, Cruz, and Colleagues Reintroduce the Financial Institution Customer Protection Act | 2019-12-10 | 2019 | 2019-12 | Republican | House | NE | Ben Sasse | S001197 | www.sasse.senate.gov | legacy | U.S. Senators Ben Sasse (R-NE) and Ted Cruz (R-TX), along with Senators Mike Braun (R-IN), John Cornyn (R-TX), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), John Kennedy (R-LA), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Thom Tillis (R-NC), today reintroduced the Financial Institution Customer Protection Act (S. 3003). This bill prohibits federal regulators from arbitrarily forcing banking institutions to terminate their relationships with legal businesses solely because the operations of the businesses are not in line with the views of the contemporaneous administration. We're a nation of laws, said Sen. Sasse, and that means that Washington's bureaucracy can't put a wall between American businesses and their banks just because their private views aren't popular with powerful politicians. Back in 2013, President Obama's regulators went after law-abiding firearms businesses and we have to make sure that never happens again. That's exactly what this common-sense legislation would do. Under the previous administration, government officials at agencies such as the Department of Justice and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation abused their power to become a partisan arm of the administration, Sen. Cruz said. This bill safeguards the American people and small businesses from being unconstitutionally cut off from their financial institutions for not falling in line with the political whims and leanings of whoever is in control of the executive branch. The full text of the bill may be viewedhere. A summary is below: FinancialInstitutionCustomerProtection Act Summary This bill prohibits a federal banking agency from formally or informally suggesting, requesting, or ordering a depositoryinstitutionto terminate either a specificcustomeraccount, or group ofcustomeraccounts, or otherwise restrict or discourage it from entering into or maintaining a banking relationship with a specificcustomeror group ofcustomers, unless: The agency has a material reason to do so, and The reason is not based solely on reputation risk to theinstitution. The material reason criterion shall be satisfied if an agency believes that a specificcustomeror group ofcustomersposes a threat to national security, including any belief that they are involved in terrorist financing.Unless the appropriate agency determines that thecustomeror group ofcustomershas used due diligence to avoid doing business with any entity described below, the bill deems the criteria addressing "material reason" to be met if the agency believes acustomeror group ofcustomersis, or is acting as, a conduit for an entity which: poses a threat to national security; is involved in terrorist financing; is an agency of the government of Iran, North Korea, Syria, or any country listed from time to time on the state sponsor of terrorism list; is either located in, or subject to the jurisdiction of, any of such countries; or does business with any entity located in such countries. If an appropriate federal banking agency orders a depositoryinstitutionto terminate a specificcustomeraccount or a group ofcustomeraccounts, the depositoryinstitutionshall inform thecustomerorcustomersof the justification for the termination. No notice may be given to thecustomer, however, if the agency requests or orders a depositoryinstitutionto terminate acustomeraccount (or a group ofcustomeraccounts) based upon a belief thatcustomeror thosecustomerspose a threat to national security or are otherwise described above. TheFinancialInstitutionsReform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 is amended to revise requirements for summoning witnesses and requiring production of books or other records the Attorney General deems relevant or material to a civil investigation in contemplation of a civil proceeding which may result in civil penalties for specified violations. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |