Title: Uniform Treatment of NRSROs Act
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector

Summary:
This bill provides for the uniform treatment under existing COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) economic aid programs of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission. This allows entities, securities, and other instruments with a credit rating from such an organization to use the rating to qualify for these aid programs.
Furthermore, the Government Accountability Office must report on credit rating quality across organizations, their effect on access to capital markets, and the implementation of this bill.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6934 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6934

 To amend the CARES Act to require the uniform treatment of nationally 
  recognized statistical rating organizations under certain programs 
   carried out in response to the COVID-19 emergency, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 19, 2020

    Ms. Dean (for herself, Ms. Waters, and Mr. Barr) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the CARES Act to require the uniform treatment of nationally 
  recognized statistical rating organizations under certain programs 
   carried out in response to the COVID-19 emergency, 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. UNIFORM TREATMENT OF NRSROS.

    (a) In General.--Section 4003 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9042), as 
amended by section 902, is further amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(m) Uniform Treatment of NRSROs.--
            ``(1) In general.--If, in carrying out this section or any 
        other program making use of a facility established under 
        section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act in response to the 
        COVID-19 emergency, the Secretary of the Treasury or the Board 
        of Governors of the Federal Reserve System establishes a 
        requirement for an entity, security, or other instrument to 
        carry a minimum credit rating, the Secretary or the Board of 
        Governors shall accept credit ratings provided by any 
        nationally recognized statistical rating organization with 
        respect to such entity, security, or other instrument, if the 
        Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the nationally 
        recognized statistical rating organization to issue credit 
        ratings with respect to the applicable asset class of the 
        entity, security, or other instrument.
            ``(2) Exception.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary or the Board of 
                Governors may exclude a nationally recognized 
                statistical rating organization from the application of 
                paragraph (1) if, in consultation with the Securities 
                and Exchange Commission, the Secretary or Board of 
                Governors, as applicable, determines that the 
                nationally recognized statistical rating organization 
                is unable to provide reliable and accurate ratings for 
                a particular asset class and that such exclusion is in 
                the public interest.
                    ``(B) Report.--If the Secretary or the Board of 
                Governors excludes a nationally recognized statistical 
                rating organization from the application of paragraph 
                (1) pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Secretary or 
                Board of Governors, as applicable, shall, as soon as 
                practicable after such exclusion, disclose to the 
                public the reasoning for such exclusion.
            ``(3) Nationally recognized statistical rating 
        organization.--In this subsection, the term `nationally 
        recognized statistical rating organization' has the meaning 
        given that term under section 3 of the Securities Exchange Act 
        of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c).''.
    (b) GAO Study.--
            (1) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States 
        shall carry out a study on--
                    (A) the quality of credit ratings across nationally 
                recognized statistical ratings organizations (as 
                defined under section 3 of the Securities Exchange Act 
                of 1934), including during the 2008 economic crisis;
                    (B) the effect of competition on the quality of 
                credit ratings and on the ability of small- and mid-
                size companies and financial institutions to access the 
                capital markets; and
                    (C) the implementation of the amendment made by 
                subsection (a).
            (2) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall issue a 
        report to the Congress containing all finding and 
        determinations made in carrying out the study required under 
        paragraph (1).
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