Title: Shutdown Guidance for Financial Institutions Act
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector

Summary:
Shutdown Guidance for Financial Institutions Act
This bill directs financial regulators—including the Federal Reserve Board, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the National Credit Union Administration—to issue guidance relating to a government shutdown. Among other things, financial regulators must issue guidance encouraging financial institutions
Financial regulators must also notify the public of this guidance in the event of a government shutdown, and complete a report after a government shutdown regarding the guidance's effectiveness.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2919 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2919

     To require the Federal financial regulators to issue guidance 
     encouraging financial institutions to work with consumers and 
  businesses affected by a Federal Government shutdown, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 20, 2019

Mr. Van Hollen introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To require the Federal financial regulators to issue guidance 
     encouraging financial institutions to work with consumers and 
  businesses affected by a Federal Government shutdown, and for other 
                               purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Shutdown Guidance for Financial 
Institutions Act''.

SEC. 2. SHUTDOWN GUIDANCE FOR FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Consumer affected by a shutdown.--The term ``consumer 
        affected by a shutdown'' means an individual who is an employee 
        of--
                    (A) the Federal Government, and who is furloughed 
                or excepted from a furlough during a shutdown;
                    (B) the District of Columbia, and who is not 
                receiving pay because of a shutdown; or
                    (C) a Federal contractor or other business, and who 
                has experienced a substantial reduction in pay due to 
                the shutdown.
            (2) Consumers and businesses affected by a shutdown.--The 
        term ``consumers and businesses affected by a shutdown'' 
        means--
                    (A) a consumer affected by a shutdown; and
                    (B) a Federal contractor (as defined under section 
                7101 of title 41, United States Code) or other business 
                that has experienced a substantial reduction in income 
                due to the shutdown.
            (3) Federal contractor.--The term ``Federal contractor'' 
        has the meaning given the term ``contractor'' in section 7101 
        of title 41, United States Code.
            (4) Federal financial regulators.--The term ``Federal 
        financial regulators'' means the Board of Governors of the 
        Federal Reserve System, the Bureau of Consumer Financial 
        Protection, the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal 
        Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the National Credit Union 
        Administration.
            (5) Shutdown.--The term ``shutdown'' means any period in 
        which there is more than a 24-hour lapse in appropriations as a 
        result of a failure to enact a regular appropriations bill or 
        continuing resolution.
    (b) Guidance.--Not later than the end of the 180-day period 
beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the Federal financial 
regulators jointly, in consultation with State banking regulators and 
other appropriate Federal and State agencies, shall issue shutdown 
guidance to the financial institutions they regulate encouraging the 
financial institutions to--
            (1) work with consumers and businesses affected by a 
        shutdown;
            (2) recognize that consumers and businesses affected by a 
        shutdown may lose access to credit and face temporary hardship 
        in making payments on debts such as mortgages, student loans, 
        car loans, business loans, or credit cards;
            (3) consider prudent efforts to modify terms on existing 
        loans or extend new credit to help consumers and businesses 
        affected by a shutdown, consistent with safe-and-sound lending 
        practices; and
            (4) take steps to prevent adverse information being 
        reported in a manner that harms consumers affected by a 
        shutdown, including by preventing modified credit arrangements 
        intended to help consumers fulfill their financial obligations 
        from being reported to, and coded by, consumer reporting 
        agencies on a consumer report in a manner that hurts the 
        creditworthiness of the consumer.
    (c) Notice of Guidance During a Shutdown.--Not later than the end 
of the 24-hour period beginning at the start of a shutdown, the Federal 
financial regulators jointly shall issue a press release to alert 
financial institutions, consumers, and businesses to the existence and 
content of the guidance issued under to subsection (b).
    (d) Post-Shutdown Report to Congress and Updated Guidance.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than the end of the 90-day 
        period beginning on the date on which a shutdown ends, the 
        Federal financial regulators jointly shall submit to Congress a 
        report that contains an analysis of the effectiveness of the 
        guidance issued pursuant to subsection (b).
            (2) Updated guidance.--Not later than the end of the 180-
        day period beginning on the date on which a report is issued 
        under paragraph (1), the Federal financial regulators shall 
        update the guidance required under subsection (b) if any 
        shortcomings are identified in the report.
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