Federal Reserve Racial and Economic Equity Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. AGUILAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2543 and thank Chairwoman Waters for assembling this legislation.

I would like to highlight a critical provision of the bill, the Expanding Financial Access for Underserved Communities Act. As a former employee of a credit union, I understand that joining a credit union can provide Americans with invaluable financial opportunities.

However, unlike other depository institutions and financial services providers, not everyone in America can join a credit union. The Chairwoman's bill, and this package, help to mitigate that issue by allowing federally chartered credit unions the opportunity to apply to provide services for low-income, underserved and rural communities, where financial services are unfortunately limited to a payday lender or pawnshop. Nothing in this bill precludes any other financial services provider from serving these communities, and credit unions should not be restricted either.

I have seen firsthand the affordable and dependable services credit unions provide, and how they exist to change the lives of their members. Let us continue to work together to bring more common-sense solutions to America's unbanked.

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