American Bankers Association President and CEO Rob Nichols today outlined how the association’s advocacy strategy has evolved in recent days to address the current political landscape in Washington, which has included challenging congressional dynamics and a concerning pattern of regulatory overreach.
In opening remarks kicking off the ABA Washington Summit, Nichols said that the association has had no choice but to turn to litigation to challenge several recent final regulatory actions, including the CPFB’s recent UDAAP manual update, the joint agency Community Reinvestment Act final rule, the CFPB’s Section 1071 final rule, and the CFPB’s credit card late fee final rule.
“We have an obligation to make sure the agencies overseeing the banking system are carrying out their duties within the law and consistent with the authority granted them by Congress,” Nichols said. “When they don’t, they can count on seeing us in court. If we have to follow the rules, so do they.”
Another way ABA has evolved its advocacy strategy is by “investing in our research and data capabilities, as we’ve seen regulators falling short on their obligations to understand the potential consequences of their actions. ABA’s policy and economic teams have produced research to support a number of policy positions—demonstrating how proposals like the Basel III endgame and the Fed’s proposed changes to Regulation II would harm banks and their consumers.
