WASHINGTON—Senate Banking Committee Democrats are pressing Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) to convene an oversight hearing with the nation’s top banking and credit-union regulators before year’s end, warning that recent deregulatory moves could undermine financial stability.
In a letter sent late last week, Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Andy Kim (D-NJ), and Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) urged Scott to call the Federal Reserve, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and National Credit Union Administration before the committee. The prudential regulators have not appeared together before the panel since May 16, 2024.
“Members of the Committee, as well as the American public, deserve to hear directly from the prudential regulators on how the deregulatory actions their agencies have taken since the start of the Trump administration affect the safety and soundness of the banks and credit unions that serve our communities,” the senators wrote.
The Democrats said economic conditions have shifted sharply since the last oversight hearing, arguing that households and small businesses are facing mounting pressure.
“Our economy is in a far different position than it was two years ago. Since taking office in January, President Trump’s failing economic policies and chaotic tariffs have driven families and small businesses to the brink,” they wrote, citing higher prices, a softening job market, and rising energy costs.
They also criticized regulators’ recent actions, saying, “President Trump’s prudential regulators are taking a hammer to an economy that is already cracking,” and accusing the agencies of cutting examination staff and rolling back safeguards meant to ensure banks and credit unions can withstand economic stress.
“With only two weeks left in the year, it is critical that you hold this long overdue, statutorily required oversight hearing,” the senators concluded, calling oversight of banking and credit-union regulators a core responsibility of the committee and warning that the regulators’ actions have “drastic implications” for constituents’ financial security.