Neil Haggerty

Rohit Chopra, President Biden's pick to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, told a Senate panel he would do more to protect veterans from foreclosure, empower consumers to dispute data on their credit records and crack down on student loan servicers that aren't helping troubled borrowers.

The Banking Committee will hold a confirmation hearing on March 2 for Rohit Chopra and Gary Gensler. They are the administration's picks, respectively, to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

House Financial Services Committee members were at odds over whether to have support for homeowners and the State Small Business Credit Initiative, both included the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, expire when the pandemic ends or later.

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said elevating affordable housing issues, examining the financial system through a climate and racial justice "lens," and holding banks accountable for their impact on consumers will be among his priorities.

Following similar decisions by big banks, the Consumer Bankers Association and Mortgage Bankers Association said they will halt all political contributions to elected officials as some lawmakers face harsh criticism for comments that incited the storming of the U.S. Capitol.

The top Democrats on the House and Senate banking committees urged the Trump administration to pull the plug on any steps to overhaul Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with the pandemic still taking a toll on the economy.

The proposal would require the government-sponsored enterprises to craft resolution plans similar to regulations imposed on the largest U.S. banks.

The Federal Reserve has already agreed to shut down emergency credit programs funded by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, but Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., and others want Congress to ensure the central bank cannot revive them.

The head of the House Financial Services Committee is already exerting influence by handing the president-elect a laundry list of Trump regulatory policies that she wants the incoming administration to reverse.

Tuesday's hearing on the CARES Act was dominated by bickering over Treasury's decision to shut down the Fed's emergency lending facilities, drowning out pleas from some lawmakers for more aid.

The agency finalized a policy allowing companies to submit formal requests for clarification on a regulatory issue. The bureau said it will publish the advisory rulings in the Federal Register.

If the GOP can hold its majority in the chamber, Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., will likely become the panel's chairman. His ardent support for free-market principles could set up partisan clashes with Democrats over pandemic relief, money laundering rules and more.

If Republicans keep their majority, the incoming administration will likely have to pick moderates over progressives to have any chance of getting its nominees approved.

The legislation would extend to the banking system the Civil Rights Act's protections for customers of hotels and restaurants.

The industry says the 2017 cut in the corporate rate helped position lenders to support the economy when the pandemic hit. But a plan proposed by Democratic nominee Joe Biden could strain banks' capital investment and hiring, observers say.

New research reveals the financial services industry both prefers and predicts an incumbent win in November.

Measures designed to give banks and credit unions more flexibility to help customers weather the coronavirus pandemic are set to expire Dec. 31 unless Congress renews them.

The future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Fed’s supervisory regime for the biggest financial institutions, reform of the Community Reinvestment Act and a host of other industry-related issues are on the ballot this November.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been slammed for planning an additional refinancing charge to cover COVID-related losses, but the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency defended the policy in House testimony.

Legislation favorable to the industry would be unlikely to pass in a divided Congress, but the biggest benefit for banks and credit unions of Republicans' retaining control of the chamber would be defending against the disruption of a Democratic blue wave.