Today In Washington – April 18, 2018

Today In Washington
April 18, 2018
Source: Jennifer White – Director, Government Relations

HSBC Chair Steve Chabot Urges for Inclusion of Small Business Bills in FY19 NDAA – Last week before the House Committee on Armed Services, Chair Steve Chabot (R-OH) of the House Small Business Committee urged Members to incorporate a package of 13 bipartisan small business bills in the FY 2019 National Defense Authorization Act. The bills include legislation addressing SBA loan programs and technical assistance programs such as Women Business Centers, small business lending, cybersecurity, government contracting, and other issues impacting small business. A full accounting of bills included in the package can be found here. Watch Chairman Chabot’s testimony here.

Agency Rules Review – The Trump Administration wants to review rules issued by independent regulatory agencies, such as the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, through the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). OIRA is an agency within the White House Office of Management and Budget. It currently reviews significant regulations, but not from independent agencies, which have opposed such action in the past.

Federal Reserve Governor on CRA – Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard said regulators must consider the impact innovations such as ATMs and mobile banking have had on banks’ reach when they update the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The CRA is the 1977 law aimed at making sure that banks lend in low- to middle-income neighborhoods that could otherwise go underserved and is in the beginning stages of being updated. Read her remarks here.

New CFPB Leadership for Regulatory Issues – Thomas B. Pahl has been appointed to oversee the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) regulatory efforts. Pahl is a former CFPB official and has been serving as the acting director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.

Hearings:
• Wednesday, 4/17 @ 10 AM: House Small Business Committee, Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access, Small Business Retirement Plans and the IRS’ Employee Plans Fee Change, Rayburn 2360.
• Wednesday, 4/17 @ 10 AM: House Committee on Ways and Means, Jobs and Opportunity: Federal Perspectives on the Jobs Gap, 1100 Longworth.
• Thursday, 4/18 @ 10 AM: House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, Subcommittee on Research and Technology: Strengthening Infrastructure Development, 2318 Rayburn.
• Thursday, 4/18 @ 11 AM: House Small Business Committee, An Examination of the Small Business Administration’s 7(a) Loans to Poultry Farmers, 2360.
• Thursday, 4/18 @ 1:30 PM: House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies, FY19 Budget – U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2362-A Rayburn.

Legislation:
S. 2679 (Sen. John Cornyn, R-TX): To provide a taxpayer bill of rights for small businesses. No bill text or summary yet available.

Reminder: Madison Services Group is pleased to co-host a reception with Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO), GovEvolve, Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce, California Association for Micro Enterprise Opporunity, and the HUBZone Contractors National Council, in cooperation with the House Small Business Caucus, in honor of National Small Business Week on Thursday, April 26, at 5:30 p.m. in the House Visitor Center, Room 201 (A and B). All are welcome to attend! Please RSVP to [email protected].