U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03) issued the following statement upon conclusion of the Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Subcommittee hearing entitled “Legislative Proposals for a More Efficient Federal Financial Regulatory Regime.”

“The legislation discussed in the Subcommittee today will better allow financial companies to serve their customers,” Luetkemeyer said. “From banks and credit unions to attorneys, we’ve seen an impeded ability for businesses across the nation to offer financial services and guidance. In order to preserve consumer choice and financial independence, Congress must tackle regulatory reform and simplify rules. The policies outlined in today’s  legislation start to break down those barriers.”

Included in the hearing was H.R. 3312, Luetkemeyer’s bipartisan Systemic Risk Designation Improvement Act. This legislation aims to improve the manner in which financial institutions are regulated by more closely tying the safeguards intended in the designations of systemically important financial institutions, or SIFIs, with actual risk posed to the financial system. More specifically, the legislation replaces the inflexible, arbitrary $50 billion threshold for designation with a series of standards that more accurately measure systemic importance. This legislation requires that the Federal Reserve review an institution’s size, interconnectedness, substitutability, global cross-jurisdictional activity, and complexity.

Similar legislation introduced by Luetkemeyer was passed by the House of Representatives in the 114^th Congress.