Last week, a bipartisan letter led by Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03) was sent to the House Appropriations Committee which expressed support to prohibit funding to Operation Choke Point in the Fiscal Year 2017 appropriations bill.

The letter, sent by Luetkemeyer and seven Members of Congress was sent to the Subcommittees on Financial Services and General Government and Commerce, Justice and Science.

As stated in the letter, “We applaud the efforts of the Department of Justice and other federal regulators to eliminate fraud and illegal transactions from our nation’s payment system. However, there must be a balance between protecting our constituents and American consumers as a whole from fraud and the need to ensure access to regulated financial services and providers.”

Luetkemeyer has offered amendments to prohibit funds for Operation Choke Point in the past few years and they have been accepted in the House of Representatives.