Title: Freedom Financing Act
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector

Summary:
Freedom Financing Act
This bill restricts certain banks, credit unions, and payment card networks from refusing to do business with a person based on reputational considerations.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 821 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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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.

    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 ``Freedom Financing Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) article I of the Constitution of the United States 
        guarantees the people of the United States the right to enact 
        policy reforms through the free and fair election of 
        representatives; and
            (2) member banks leveraging their power and position to 
        effectively illegalize legal commerce by refusing to do 
        business with certain industries and individuals due to their 
        differing political beliefs from the member bank violates and 
        usurps the people of the United States and the right of their 
        elected representatives to determine public policy.

SEC. 3. ADVANCES TO INDIVIDUAL MEMBER BANKS.

    (a) Member Banks.--Section 10B of the Federal Reserve Act (12 
U.S.C. 347b) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Prohibition on Use of Discount Window Lending Programs.--
            ``(1) Definition.--In this subsection, the term 
        `traditional underwriting and credit considerations'--
                    ``(A) includes a good-faith determination by a 
                member bank that the member bank lacks sufficient 
                familiarity with a line of business or geographic 
                region to do business with a person in that line of 
                business or geographic region; and
                    ``(B) does not include reputational risks.
            ``(2) Prohibition.--No member bank with more than 
        $10,000,000,000 in total consolidated assets may use a discount 
        window lending program if the member bank refuses to do 
        business with any person licensed under section 923 of title 
        18, United States Code, who is in compliance with the law, 
        based on concerns other than traditional underwriting and 
        credit considerations.''.
    (b) Insured Depository Institutions.--Section 8(a)(2)(A) of the 
Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1818(a)(2)(A)) is amended--
            (1) in clause (ii), by striking ``or'' at the end;
            (2) in clause (iii), by striking the comma at the end and 
        inserting ``; or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
                            ``(iv) an insured depository institution 
                        with more than $10,000,000,000 in total 
                        consolidated assets that refuses to do with any 
                        person licensed under section 923 of title 18, 
                        United States Code, who is in compliance with 
                        the law, based on concerns other than 
                        traditional underwriting and credit 
                        considerations, as defined in section 10B(c) of 
                        the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 347b(c)).''.

SEC. 4. PAYMENT CARD NETWORK.

    (a) Definition.--In this section, the term ``payment card network'' 
has the meaning given the term in section 921(c) of the Electronic Fund 
Transfer Act (15 U.S.C. 1693o-2(c)).
    (b) Prohibition.--No payment card network may, directly or through 
any agent, processor, or licensed member of the network, by contract, 
requirement, condition, penalty, or otherwise, prohibit or inhibit the 
ability of any person licensed under section 923 of title 18, United 
States Code, who is in compliance with the law, to obtain access to 
services or products of the payment card network because of political 
or reputational considerations.
    (c) Civil Penalty.--Any payment card network that violates 
subsection (b) shall be assessed a civil penalty of not more than 10 
percent of the value of the services or products described in that 
subsection, not to exceed $10,000 per violation.

SEC. 5. CREDIT UNIONS.

    (a) Advances to Credit Unions.--Section 13 of the Federal Reserve 
Act (12 U.S.C. 342) is amended by inserting ``Provided further, That no 
such nonmember bank or trust company with more than $10,000,000,000 in 
total consolidated assets may refuse to do business with any person 
licensed under section 923 of title 18, United States Code, who is in 
compliance with the law, based on concerns other than traditional 
underwriting and credit considerations, as defined in section 10B(c):'' 
after ``appropriate:''.
    (b) Revocation of NCUA Insurance.--Section 206(b)(1) of the Federal 
Credit Union Act (12 U.S.C. 1786) is amended by inserting ``or is 
refusing or has refused to do business with any person licensed under 
section 923 of title 18, United States Code, who is in compliance with 
the law, based on concerns other than traditional underwriting and 
credit considerations, as defined in section 10B(c) of the Federal 
Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 347b(c)),'' after ``as an insured credit 
union,''.

SEC. 6. USE OF AUTOMATED CLEARING HOUSE NETWORK.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Covered credit union.--The term ``covered credit 
        union'' means--
                    (A) any insured credit union, as defined in section 
                101 of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 U.S.C. 1752); 
                or
                    (B) any credit union that is eligible to make 
                application to become an insured credit union under 
                section 201 of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 U.S.C. 
                1781).
            (2) Member bank.--The term ``member bank'' has the meaning 
        given the term in the third undesignated paragraph of the first 
        section of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 221).
    (b) Prohibition.--No covered credit union or member bank with more 
than $10,000,000,000 in total consolidated assets may use the Automated 
Clearing House Network if that member bank refuses to do business with 
any person licensed under section 923 of title 18, United States Code, 
who is in compliance with the law, based on concerns other than 
traditional underwriting and credit considerations, as defined in 
section 10B(c) of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 347b(c)), as added 
by section 3(a) of this Act.
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