Majority Press Releases
During Holiday Season, Brown, Warnock, Fetterman Urge CFPB to Ensure Consumers Do Not Struggle with ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ Debt
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and John Fetterman (D-PA) urged Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Rohit Chopra to monitor the risks posed by “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) products which let consumers pay off certain purchases over several weeks. In a letter to Chopra, the Senators urged the Director to monitor BNPL products as consumers significantly inc… Continue Reading
December 15, 2023
Brown, Kennedy, Colleagues Reintroduce Bill to Ensure a Fair and Competitive Banking System
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, along with Senators John Kennedy (R-LA), Bob Casey (D-PA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mike Braun (R-IN), and Roger Wicker (R-MS) reintroduced the Close the Shadow Banking Loophole Act, legislation to require companies that own an industrial loan company (ILC) to be subject to the same rules and consumer protections as traditional banks. “Letting Big Tech and commer… Continue Reading
December 14, 2023
Brown, Warner Press SEC to Act on Workforce Management Disclosure
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA), a member of the Banking and Housing Committee, urged Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler to act quickly on new rules to improve human capital disclosure by public companies. The SEC’s fall 2023 regulatory agenda suggests the “Human Capital Management Disclosure” proposed rule is likely to be delayed, leaving inv… Continue Reading
December 14, 2023
Brown, Reed, Warren Urge Venmo, Cash App to reimburse victims of Fraud and Scams
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, Jack Reed (D-RI), a senior member of the Banking and Housing Committee, and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), called on Venmo to adopt new policies to reimburse consumers who get scammed, and make it easier for users to report scams and fraud on Venmo. This new letter comes as instant payment platform Zelle has taken new steps to reimburse customers who fall prey to imposter… Continue Reading
December 13, 2023
Brown Presses Big Banks To Follow Through On Promise To Servicemembers
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, urged the CEOs of the four largest consumer banks to proactively ensure that servicemembers receive the benefits they deserve. As Senator Brown said at last week’s annual big bank accountability hearing, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) caps interest rates for active duty servicemembers at 6 percent. However, banks like JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Ban… Continue Reading
December 13, 2023
Brown Presses Biden Admin On Its Strategy To Fight Fentanyl Trafficking
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, called on the Biden Administration to detail its strategy to address the role the governments of China and Mexico play in illicit fentanyl trafficking. In a letter, Brown called on Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to lay out specific benchmarks for the administration’s strategy for combating fentanyl trafficking and the opioid crisis and ensure accountability from … Continue Reading
December 6, 2023
Brown to Banks: Higher Capital Requirements Protect Consumers and Taxpayers From Wall Street's Risky Bets
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Annual Oversight of Wall Street Firms.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery follow: The eight bank CEOs appearing before us today lead the biggest global, systemically important banks in the United States. Your banks hold nearly $15 trillion in assets, manage trillions of dollars… Continue Reading
December 5, 2023
Ahead of Big Bank Hearing, Banking and Housing Committee Releases Fact Sheet on Wall Street Megabanks
Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs majority released a fact sheet on the nation’s largest banks. These banks play an outsized role in our economy, with a significant share of U.S. deposits and assets totaling $14.8 trillion, and broad reach across the financial system. While Wall Street banks argue that stronger rules to protect the public will be too expensive, they are actually making billions of dollars in profits every year and paying CEOs several hundred… Continue Reading
November 30, 2023
Brown, Colleagues Urge Federal Reserve to Strengthen Guardrails for the Biggest Banks
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Jack Reed (D-RI), a senior member of the Banking and Housing Committee, Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and John Fetterman (D-PA) expressed strong support for the Federal Reserve’s efforts to strengthen the safety and soundness of the global systemically important banking organizations (GSIBs). In a letter to Federal Reserve Vice Chair of Supervision Michael Barr, the S… Continue Reading
November 30, 2023
Brown: The CFPB Is How Consumers and Servicemembers Take on Powerful Special Interests
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Semi-Annual Report to Congress.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery follow: Welcome back, Director Chopra. Since the CFPB first opened its doors, we have had more than a decade of progress towards rooting out abuses and injustices for consumers … Continue Reading
November 29, 2023
Brown, Reed Warn Regulators of Risks Posed by Private Credit Market
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Jack Reed (D-RI), a senior member of the Banking and Housing Committee, urged financial regulators to assess the potential risks posed by the growing private credit market. In a letter to Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Chair Martin Gruenberg, and Acting Comptroller Michael Hsu, the Senators urged… Continue Reading
November 28, 2023
Brown, Fetterman Press Cleveland Fed on Transparency in Selecting New President
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) pressed the presidential selection committee to ensure the selection process for the next President of the Cleveland Federal Reserve is transparent and includes public input. The Senators emphasized the importance of selecting a President that reflects the diversity of the region and that will put working families first. “The rec… Continue Reading
November 21, 2023
Brown Statement on FDIC Investigation
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, issued the following statement after it was announced that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Board will establish a Special Committee to oversee the independent review of agency culture. “The FDIC Board has taken appropriate steps so that the oversight of the outside firm’s assessment of the agency’s culture can proceed independently,” said Brown. … Continue Reading
November 17, 2023
Brown Leads Committee Democrats in Calling for An Independent Investigation of FDIC Culture
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, led 11 members of the Senate Banking and Housing Committee in calling for an independent investigation into the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) after reports that the agency has failed to fix a toxic culture of sexual harassment and misconduct, discrimination, and misogyny. In a letter to FDIC Acting Inspector General Tyler Smith, the senators express… Continue Reading
November 16, 2023
Brown Calls for Independent Investigation into FDIC’s Workplace Culture
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, issued the following statement following reports of a toxic work culture at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). “The reports are extremely concerning. I am calling for the FDIC’s Office of the Inspector General to conduct an independent and thorough investigation into the workplace culture at the agency.” ###… Continue Reading
November 16, 2023
Brown, Tester, Reed, Kaine Urge VA Secretary to Help Veterans Stay in Their Homes
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Yesterday, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, along with Senators Jon Tester (D-MT), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and a senior member of the Banking and Housing Committee, Jack Reed (D-RI), a senior member of the Banking and Housing Committee and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, and Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, urged Depa… Continue Reading
November 14, 2023
Brown to Financial Regulators: You Are Responsible for Making Sure the Financial System Operates Safely
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the U.S. Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing on “Oversight of Financial Regulators: Protecting Main Street Not Wall Street.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery follow: Today we’ll hear testimony from the heads of the four federal agencies responsible for protecting our banking and credit union system and making sure it serves everyone: the… Continue Reading
November 8, 2023
Ahead Of Veterans Day, Brown and Colleagues Urge Credit Reporting Agencies to Better Protect Servicemembers’ Credit Reports
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, held a conference call outlining concerns that servicemembers and their families are not receiving the credit report protections required by law from the big three credit reporting agencies. Brown, along with Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), a senior member of the Banking Committee and Chairman of the Armed Services Committee, Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Chris Van Ho… Continue Reading
November 7, 2023
Brown Statement on Release of Comprehensive Federal Home Loan Bank Review
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the U.S. Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, released the following statement after the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) issued a report on the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLBank) System. “The Federal Home Loan Bank System has played an important role in our housing market for 90 years. It is important that Director Thompson and FHFA undertook this comprehensive review, and I look forward to working with my c… Continue Reading
November 7, 2023
Brown Advances Nominations for NCUA, SEC, FDIC, SIPC, and Export-Import Bank
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, held an executive session to vote on the nominations of Ms. Tanya Otsuka, of Virginia, to be a Member of the National Credit Union Administration; The Honorable Mark Uyeda, of California, to be a Member of the Securities and Exchange Commission; The Honorable Spencer Bachus III, of Alabama, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank; Ms. Je… Continue Reading
