Week InAdvance September 15, 2014

 

Relevant Congressional Activity  |  Relevant Agency Activity

The House and Senate are slated to recess again at the end of this week and do not plan to return until after the November midterm elections. With current fiscal year funding set to expire Sept. 30, the Senate and House must vote this week on a short-term "continuing resolution" (CR) spending bill in order to keep the government operating beyond the end of the month. The House had planned a vote on the CR last week, but Republican leaders decided to delay the vote while mulling President Obama's request that Congress add a measure authorizing U.S. military assistance to help pro-Western rebels in Syria combat Islamic State militants. Congress is also expected to vote on renewing the Export-Import Bank's charter, which is set to expire. 

On Tuesday, the Senate Banking Committee has scheduled a hearing on the state of small depository institutions, and the Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on retirement savings. On Wednesday, the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will take a critical look at the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC), and the CFTC will discuss a proposed rule on uncleared margin requirements. On Thursday, the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations will hold a hearing on tax audits of large partnerships, including hedge funds and private equity firms. 

Please see below for further detail on these events and others in Washington this week.

RelevantCongressionalActivityRelevant Congressional Activity

 

House Financial Services Committee

On Wednesday, Sept. 17, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing on "Oversight of the Financial Stability Oversight Council." Witness testimony will be given by:

  • Patrick Pinschmidt - Deputy Assistant Secretary, Financial Stability Oversight Council
  • A. Nicole Clowers - Director, Financial Markets and Community Investment, Government Accountability Office

House Ways and Means Committee

On Wednesday, Sept. 17, the Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures (Tax) will hold a hearing on "Private Employer Defined Benefit Pension Plans." The hearing will focus on some of the challenges facing employers, employees, and retirees who rely on defined benefit pension plans to help provide retirement security.  It will examine the funding rules governing multiemployer plans, as well as selected issues that affect single employer plans.  

 

Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee

On Tuesday, Sept. 16, the Senate Banking Committee will hold a full committee hearing on "Examining the State of Small Depository Institutions." Witness testimony will be given by:

  • Doreen R. Eberley - Director, Division of Risk Management Supervision, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
  • Toney Bland - Senior Deputy Comptroller for Midsize and Community Bank Supervision, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
  • Maryann Hunter - Deputy Director, Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
  • Larry Fazio - Director, Office of Examination and Insurance, National Credit Union Administration
  • Charles A. Vice - Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Financial Institutions, on behalf of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors
  • Jeff Plagge - President and CEO, Northwest Financial Corporation and Chairman of the American Bankers Association
  • John Buhrmaster - President, First National Bank of Scotia, Scotia New York and Chairman of the Independent Community Bankers of America
  • Dennis Pierce - Chief Executive Officer, CommunityAmerica Credit Union and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Credit Union National Association
  • Linda McFadden - President and CEO, XCEL Federal Credit Union, Bloomfield, New Jersey on behalf of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions
  • Dr. Marcus Stanley - Policy Director, Americans for Financial Reform
  • Michael D. Calhoun - President, Center for Responsible Lending 

On Wednesday, Sept. 17, the Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on "Who is the Economy Working For? The Impact of Rising Inequality on the American Economy." Witness testimony will be given by:

  •  Heather McGhee - President, Demos
  • Dr. Amir Sufi - Professor of Finance, University of Chicago
  • Claudia Viek - CEO, California Association for Micro Enterprise Opportunity (CAMEO).

On Thursday, Sept. 18, the Senate Banking Committee will hold a full committee hearing on "Assessing and Enhancing Protections in Consumer Financial Services." Witness testimony will be given by:

  • Travis B. Plunkett - Senior Director, Family Economic Stability, The Pew Charitable Trusts
  • Sheri Ekdom - Director, Center for Financial Resources, Lutheran Social Services of South Dakota
  • Oliver I. Ireland - Partner, Morrison & Foerster
  • Hilary Shelton - Washington Bureau Director and Senior Vice President for Advocacy, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People

Senate Finance Committee

On Tuesday, Sept. 16, the Senate Finance Committee will hold a full committee hearing on "Retirement Savings 2.0: Updating Savings Policy for the Modern Economy." Witness testimony will be given by:

  • John C. Bogle - Founder and Former CEO, Vanguard
  • Dr. Brian Reid - Chief Economist, Investment Company Institute
  • Ellen Schultz - Author & Investigative Reporter, formerly with The Wall Street Journal
  • Scott Betts - Senior Vice President, National Benefit Services
  • Dr. Brigitte C. Madrian - Aetna Professor of Public Policy and Corporate Management, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government
  • Dr. Andrew G. Biggs - Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute

On Wednesday, Sept. 17, the Senate Finance Committee will hold a full committee hearing on "Reforming America's Outdated Energy Tax Code." Witness testimony will be given by:

  • Don Nickles - Chairman and CEO, Nickles Group
  • Norman R. Augustine - Retired Chairman and CEO, Lockheed Martin Corporation
  • Dr. Gilbert Metcalf - Professor of Economics, Tufts University
  • Ethan Zindler - Head of Policy Analysis, Bloomberg New Energy Finance
  • David Kreutzer - Research Fellow in Energy Economics and Climate Change, Center for Data Analysis, Heritage Foundation

Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee

On Thursday, Sept. 18, the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations will hold a hearing on "Tax Audits of Large Partnerships."A witness list will be available Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2014.

 

RelevantAgencyActivityRelevant Agency Activity


 

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

On Monday, Sept. 15, the Fed will hold a closed meeting for review and determination of the advance and discount rates to be charged by the Federal Reserve Banks.
 

On Tuesday, Sept. 16, the Fed will hold a closed meeting to discuss medium-term monetary policy issues.
 

On Tuesday, Sept. 16 and Wednesday, Sept. 17, the Fed's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will hold one of their eight regularly scheduled meetings. This meeting will include a Summary of Economic Projections and a press conference by the Chair.
 

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

On Wednesday, Sept. 17, the CFTC will hold a public meeting to consider a proposed rule on margin requirements for uncleared swaps for swap dealers and major swap participants and a final rule on exclusion of utility operations-related swaps with utility special entities from de minimis threshold for swaps with special entities.
 

The Securities and Exchange Commission

On Thursday, Sept. 18, the SEC will hold a closed meeting regarding settlement of injunctive actions, institution settlement of administrative proceedings, resolution of litigation claim, and other matters relating to enforcement proceedings.