WASHINGTON—Credit union trade groups are focused on Washington this week watching for developments in cyber security legislation.
“As usual we are engaged in a number of committee meetings on both sides of the capital, including Tuesday’s Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on mitigating America's cybersecurity risk,” said CUNA Chief Advocacy Officer Ryan Donovan, who noted that CUNA will also be paying close attention to the Senate Finance Committee’s hearing today on early impressions of the new tax law.
NAFCU said it is also closely monitoring both meetings, noting that on Monday the trade association met with Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Director Kenneth Blanco to discuss the agency's ongoing priorities and credit unions' regulatory burden associated with suspicious activity report (SAR) filings, among other concerns.
It was NAFCU's first meeting with Blanco, who was named to the post in November. In September, NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger met with then FinCEN Acting Director Jamal El-Hindi, now the agency's deputy director. NAFCU has previously raised concerns about the regulatory burden presented by FinCEN's rules on collecting SARs, and has also addressed with FinCEN the currency transaction reporting process.
NAFCU has also voiced its concerns regarding FinCEN's final due diligence rules, effective May 11, because of the costs and burden they would impose on credit unions. The rules would amend the agency's existing rules, including a requirement for those opening bank or credit union accounts for a "legal entity" to provide information on the beneficial owners of the account, the trade association said.
Berger, NAFCU Vice President of Regulatory Compliance Brandy Bruyere, NAFCU Director of Regulatory Affairs Alexander Monterrubio and NAFCU Regulatory Affairs Counsel Ann Kossachev attended Monday’s meeting.
In other hearings this week:
- The House Ways and Means Committee on Wednesday will hear various perspectives from employees on the jobs gap
- A House Financial Services Subcommittee on Wednesday will look into the role the Department of Housing and Urban Development plays in rental assistance
- The Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee on Wednesday will look into preparing small businesses for cybersecurity success
- The House Armed Services Committee is holding a mark-up Thursday on the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2019
- Throughout this week, the House Appropriations Committee will review different budgets from various government departments