House Passes Financial Services Equity Bill with Brown Amendment

WASHINGTON – Today, Representative Shontel M. Brown (OH-11) supported passage in the House of Representatives of the Financial Services Racial Equity, Inclusion, and Economic Justice Act. The bill includes an amendment offered by Rep. Brown that would strengthen reporting requirements on labor force participation among working families with children.  

As of 2019, the average Black and Brown household held just 15 to 20 percent of the net worth of the average white family. A lack of fair access to credit and other financial services due to lending discrimination, disparities in employment, and banking deserts are a barrier to housing, homeownership, entrepreneurship, and other wealth building opportunities for communities of color.

“For far too long, minority consumers and businesses have been blocked from accessing affordable financial services,” said Rep. Brown. “These systemic barriers to credit and capital worsen existing racial and economic inequality. By rooting out persistent discrimination in our financial system, this bill would help to expand economic opportunity in underserved communities.”

Rep. Brown’s amendment would require the Federal Reserve’s semiannual Monetary Policy Report to include demographic data on individuals with dependent children under the age of 18 in its analysis of recent labor force trends.

“I am so pleased the bill includes my amendment to ensure the Fed reports on labor trends among working families,” said Rep. Brown. “While the unemployment rate is near historic lows, women with children have returned to work at slower rates. This new data from the Fed would help us understand the scope of the problem and begin to address it with effective childcare policies.”

The Financial Services Racial Equity, Inclusion, and Economic Justice Act would expand access to financial services by:

• Requiring the Federal Reserve to carry out its duties in a manner that supports the elimination of racial and ethnic disparities in employment, income, wealth, and access to affordable credit;
• Requiring diversity and inclusion data disclosure from federally regulated financial firms;
• Prohibiting lending discrimination on the basis of gender identity, sexual orientation, or geography;
• Allowing federal credit unions to expand their membership to include underserved communities; and
• Strengthening community development financial institutions and minority depository institutions that serve historically underserved communities.

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