STATE GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Gov. Braun calls special session
Indiana Governor Mike Braun called for a special session of the Indiana General Assembly to begin Nov. 3. Gov. Braun cited redistricting and updating Indiana state tax code to reflect tax law changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill as the grounds for calling a special session. Indiana lawmakers have 40 days from the date of the beginning of the special session to conclude all legislative work; however, there is no requirement that lawmakers must begin on the date that the special session was called. The Indiana General Assembly is currently working on a starting date, but has not released the timeline.
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
FDIC’s Hill testifies on bank supervision during nomination hearing
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Acting Chairman Travis Hill appeared before the Senate Banking Committee this week for his nomination hearing, where he once again pledged to refocus agency supervision on material financial risks.
FDIC’s Hill: Deposit insurance reform could boost confidence
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Acting Chairman Travis Hill said deposit insurance reform could strengthen depositor confidence. During a Senate Banking Committee hearing to consider his nomination for FDIC chairman, Hill said:
- Reforms like the Main Street Depositor Protection Act (S.2999) could strengthen confidence in community banks while managing systemic risk.
- His goal is a more modern, risk-based approach to examinations that improves fraud detection while maintaining robust capital standards.
- The cumulative impact of regulations highlights the need to assess how overlapping regulations affect community banks’ competitiveness and operations.
President Donald Trump earlier this month nominated Hill to be FDIC chairman. Hill has served as acting chairman since January and was previously sworn in as vice chairman in January 2023. If Hill’s nomination is advanced by the committee, a full Senate vote would follow.
Fed lowers interest rates by 25 basis points
The Federal Open Market Committee voted to lower target interest rates by 25 basis points to a range of 3.75-4%.
The FOMC said:
- Economic activity has been expanding at a moderate pace.
- Job gains have slowed this year, and the unemployment rate has edged up but remained low.
- Inflation has increased since earlier in the year and remains somewhat elevated.
Voting against the action were Stephen Miran, who advocated lowering the target range for the federal funds rate by 50 basis points, and Jeffrey Schmid, who advocated no change to the target range at this meeting. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the FOMC will continue to determine the appropriate stance of monetary policy based on the incoming data and differing views for how to proceed. “A further reduction in the policy rate at the December meeting is not a forgone conclusion—far from it,” he said.
Sen. Tillis proposes legislation to address debanking
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., released a discussion draft of proposed legislation to address alleged debanking by banks and banking regulators by creating a national standard for account access and establishing new watchdog mechanisms for banking agencies.
Lawmakers, policymakers express concern about interest-bearing stablecoins
Several policymakers raised concerns with media outlets in recent days about a loophole in the Genius Act that allows stablecoin issuers to avoid its prohibition on paying interest.
Court temporarily halts Section 1033 rule enforcement
A federal court issued an order preventing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from enforcing its rule on financial data sharing while the bureau reassesses the regulation.
CFPB: Federal law preempts state law on credit reporting
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued an interpretive rule stating that the Fair Credit Reporting Act preempts state laws on credit reporting, with the move coming after several states enacted laws banning the use of medical debt in credit reports.