II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 821 

To amend the Federal Reserve Act to prohibit certain member banks from 

using discount window lending programs, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 14, 2019 

Mr. CRAMER (for himself and Mr. KENNEDY) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To amend the Federal Reserve Act to prohibit certain member banks from using discount window lending programs, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Freedom Financing 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 

8 (1) article I of the Constitution of the United 

9 States guarantees the people of the United States 


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1 the right to enact policy reforms through the free 

2 and fair election of representatives; and 

3 (2) member banks leveraging their power and 

4 position to effectively illegalize legal commerce by re5 fusing to do business with certain industries and in6 dividuals due to their differing political beliefs from 

7 the member bank violates and usurps the people of 

8 the United States and the right of their elected rep9 resentatives to determine public policy. 

10 SEC. 3. ADVANCES TO INDIVIDUAL MEMBER BANKS. 

11 (a) MEMBER BANKS.—Section 10B of the Federal 

12 Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 347b) is amended by adding at 

13 the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION ON USE OF DISCOUNT WINDOW

15 LENDING PROGRAMS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 

17 ‘traditional underwriting and credit consider18 ations’— 

19 ‘‘(A) includes a good-faith determination 

20 by a member bank that the member bank lacks 

21 sufficient familiarity with a line of business or 

22 geographic region to do business with a person 

23 in that line of business or geographic region; 

24 and 

25 ‘‘(B) does not include reputational risks. 


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1 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION.—No member bank with 

2 more than $10,000,000,000 in total consolidated as3 sets may use a discount window lending program if 

4 the member bank refuses to do business with any 

5 person licensed under section 923 of title 18, United 

6 States Code, who is in compliance with the law, 

7 based on concerns other than traditional under8 writing and credit considerations.’’. 

9 (b) INSURED DEPOSITORY INSTITUTIONS.—Section 

10 8(a)(2)(A) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 

11 U.S.C. 1818(a)(2)(A)) is amended— 

12 (1) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

13 (2) in clause (iii), by striking the comma at the 

14 end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

15 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(iv) an insured depository institution 

17 with more than $10,000,000,000 in total 

18 consolidated assets that refuses to do with 

19 any person licensed under section 923 of 

20 title 18, United States Code, who is in 

21 compliance with the law, based on concerns 

22 other than traditional underwriting and 

23 credit considerations, as defined in section 

24 10B(c) of the Federal Reserve Act (12 

25 U.S.C. 347b(c)).’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. PAYMENT CARD NETWORK. 

2 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘payment 

3 card network’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

4 921(c) of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (15 U.S.C. 

5 1693o–2(c)). 

6 (b) PROHIBITION.—No payment card network may, 

7 directly or through any agent, processor, or licensed mem8 ber of the network, by contract, requirement, condition, 

9 penalty, or otherwise, prohibit or inhibit the ability of any 

10 person licensed under section 923 of title 18, United 

11 States Code, who is in compliance with the law, to obtain 

12 access to services or products of the payment card network 

13 because of political or reputational considerations. 

14 (c) CIVIL PENALTY.—Any payment card network 

15 that violates subsection (b) shall be assessed a civil penalty 

16 of not more than 10 percent of the value of the services 

17 or products described in that subsection, not to exceed 

18 $10,000 per violation. 

19 SEC. 5. CREDIT UNIONS. 

20 (a) ADVANCES TO CREDIT UNIONS.—Section 13 of 

21 the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 342) is amended by 

22 inserting ‘‘Provided further, That no such nonmember 

23 bank or trust company with more than $10,000,000,000 

24 in total consolidated assets may refuse to do business with 

25 any person licensed under section 923 of title 18, United 

26 States Code, who is in compliance with the law, based on 


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1 concerns other than traditional underwriting and credit 

2 considerations, as defined in section 10B(c):’’ after ‘‘ap3 propriate:’’. 

4 (b) REVOCATION OF NCUA INSURANCE.—Section 

5 206(b)(1) of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 U.S.C. 

6 1786) is amended by inserting ‘‘or is refusing or has re7 fused to do business with any person licensed under sec8 tion 923 of title 18, United States Code, who is in compli9 ance with the law, based on concerns other than tradi10 tional underwriting and credit considerations, as defined 

11 in section 10B(c) of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 

12 347b(c)),’’ after ‘‘as an insured credit union,’’. 

13 SEC. 6. USE OF AUTOMATED CLEARING HOUSE NETWORK. 

14 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 (1) COVERED CREDIT UNION.—The term ‘‘cov16 ered credit union’’ means— 

17 (A) any insured credit union, as defined in 

18 section 101 of the Federal Credit Union Act 

19 (12 U.S.C. 1752); or 

20 (B) any credit union that is eligible to 

21 make application to become an insured credit 

22 union under section 201 of the Federal Credit 

23 Union Act (12 U.S.C. 1781). 

24 (2) MEMBER BANK.—The term ‘‘member bank’’ 

25 has the meaning given the term in the third undesigVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:33 Mar 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S821.IS S821

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1 nated paragraph of the first section of the Federal 

2 Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 221). 

3 (b) PROHIBITION.—No covered credit union or mem4 ber bank with more than $10,000,000,000 in total consoli5 dated assets may use the Automated Clearing House Net6 work if that member bank refuses to do business with any 

7 person licensed under section 923 of title 18, United 

8 States Code, who is in compliance with the law, based on 

9 concerns other than traditional underwriting and credit 

10 considerations, as defined in section 10B(c) of the Federal 

11 Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 347b(c)), as added by section 3(a) 

12 of this Act. 

Æ 


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