Issues affecting credit union will get tangled up in the drafting of the Democratic national party platform. A July 1 draft of the party platform states that the Dodd-Frank Act should be defended and even expanded and the U.S. Postal Service should be allowed to offer basic banking services.
"At a time when many of the largest banks have shunned communities across America, Democrats believe that we need to give Americans affordable banking options, including by empowering the United States Postal Service to facilitate the delivery of basic banking services," the document stated.
In January 2014, the USPS Office of Inspector General recommended that the postal service was well positioned to offer basic banking services.
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"More than a quarter of Americans live partially or completely without access to mainstream financial services and are often forced to rely on costly services like payday loans or check cashing to cover their everyday expenses," the USPS said on its website
The Democrats also vowed to defend Dodd-Frank.
"We will also vigorously implement, enforce, and build on the landmark Dodd-Frank financial reform law, and we will stop dead in its tracks every Republican effort to weaken it," the platform continues. "We will continue to protect consumers and defend the CFPB from Republican attacks."
Rather than offering specific legislative proposals, the platform outlines general principles for which the party stands. The final platform officially will be adopted at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia on Aug. 25-28.
Republicans on Capitol Hill have been pushing for a repeal of Dodd-Frank and decreased powers for the CFPB. House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) has included the repeal as a main point in his financial services overhaul plan.
While that legislation won't become law this year, the proposal and the Democratic platform frames a debate that is certain to occur next year, with the outcome depending on which party captures the White House and Congress.
The Democrats also said they will ban golden parachutes for financial services officials who accept jobs as regulators. They said they will require bank and corporate regulators to recuse themselves from official work that would benefit their former employers and ban financial service regulators from lobbying their former employers for at least two years.
Following on the heels of congressional Democrats, the draft platform also states that the party will support efforts to limit the use of mandatory arbitration clauses in employment and service contracts, arguing that such clauses unfairly strip workers, consumers and students of their day in court.
The draft platform also calls for increasing the minimum wage, saying that Americans should earn at least $15 an hour. The document calls for raising the minimum wage and indexing it.
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