Congressman Dennis Cardoza
18th Congressional District of California

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the House of Representatives passed an amendment offered by Congressman Cardoza aimed at protecting community banks from burdensome federal regulations while also ensuring they have incentives to participate in federal loan programs.

Under Congressman Cardoza’s amendment, the Treasury Secretary will be allowed to exempt community banks from new compensation requirements if it is determined that they have received less than $250 million in TARP funds and are not promoting unsound compensation policies or risk-taking.

The aim is to ensure that community banks are not subjected to burdensome regulations required of the large banks and their executives that have contributed to the recession. Such regulations could deter some community banks from accepting much needed federal assistance, thus slowing the nation’s economic recovery.

“Community banks were not the bad actors that led to the collapse of our credit markets, and we need them to be part of the solution to our economic recovery,” said Congressman Cardoza. “By painting community banks with the same brush as the financial institutions that abused the trust of the taxpayers and their shareholders, we unfairly add to the regulatory burden of community banks. Community banks are valuable institutions and we must do all we can to ensure they are part of our economic recovery.”