2025 Lobby Issues

ICBA strongly opposes the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s 1071 rule and the underlying statute, which requires lenders to collect and report extensive personal data on small business credit applicants to the federal government. ICBA supports legislative efforts to both fully repeal Section 1071 and to reform the statute so fewer community banks and small businesses are harmed by intrusive and overly burdensome data collection and reporting requirements.
Support H.R. 976/S. 557, the 1071 Repeal to Protect Small Business Lending Act, sponsored by Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX) and Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) to fully repeal Section 1071.
Support H.R. 941, the Small LENDER Act, sponsored by Rep. French Hill (R-AR) to reform Section 1071 so fewer community banks and fewer small businesses must comply.

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expires at year-end and must be extended to prevent economically damaging tax increases.
Expiring provisions include the deduction for Subchapter S banks and small businesses under Section 199A and the current estate tax deduction.
Any increase in the current top individual rate of 37% would harm millions of pass-through businesses, including Subchapter S banks, that are taxed at the individual rate.
ICBA urges the inclusion of the ACRE Act (see below) in tax legislation to support rural lending.
ICBA will oppose any offsets that would increase taxes for community banks or their customers. In particular, ICBA strongly opposes any change to the exemption for municipal bond interest. Community banks invest in these bonds to support their local communities.

ICBA advocates for taxation of credit unions with assets of $1 billion or more as part of 2025 tax legislation.
Many of today’s tax-subsidized credit unions are multi-billion-dollar institutions that are the functional equivalent of commercial banks, competing in the same markets for the same customers and offering the same services.
Last year, this wasteful and outmoded tax subsidy financed a record number of acquisitions of taxpaying community banks. Each acquisition reduces tax revenues for federal, state, and local governments while cutting off a critical source of small-business and agricultural lending for local communities.

A robust farm bill is vital in helping community banks sustain farmers and ranchers and our rural communities.
The farm bill must: strengthen commodity programs; protect crop insurance; increase USDA guaranteed farm loan limits; and provide quicker turnaround of guaranteed loans.
ICBA opposes the Farm Credit System’s aggressive powers expansion into non-farm financing, including lending or investment in “essential community facilities,” businesses serving aquaculture, home mortgages in larger communities, and small businesses.
These activities are well beyond the Farm Credit System’s mission as a tax-advantaged government sponsored enterprise (GSE) with assets of $550 billion.

We ask your support for the following legislation:

The Promoting New Bank Formation Act (H.R. 478, Rep. Andy Barr) to provide regulatory and capital flexibility for de novo bank charters. America has been harmed by recent industry consolidation and needs new charters.
The Small Bank Holding Company Relief Act (H.R. 2835, Rep. Byron Donalds) to raise the asset threshold to qualify as a Small Bank Holding Company from $3B to $25B and increase access to capital for small businesses and small banks.
The TAILOR Act (S. 427, Sen. Mike Rounds/ Rep. Barry Loudermilk) would require the agencies to tailor rules and regulations based on banks’ risk profile and business model.
The FDIC Board Accountability Act (Rep. Bill Huizenga) would strengthen and diversify the FDIC Board by requiring a member with experience in small depository institutions.

Support the bipartisan Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act (H.R. 2808/S. 1467), sponsored by Rep. John Rose (R-TN) and Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) to protect the financial privacy of mortgage applicants by restricting the sale of invasive “trigger leads.”
After consumers apply for a residential mortgage, credit reporting agencies sell their loan application and contact information to third parties. These “trigger leads” create a flood of unwanted solicitations, compromise consumer privacy, and create consumer confusion and complaints.
The Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act would require a consumer’s consent for the sale of trigger leads or restrict sales to lenders that have an existing mortgage relationship with the consumer.

Co-sponsor and support inclusion of the ACRE Act (H.R. 1822/S. 838) in the tax relief package. ACRE is bipartisan, bicameral legislation sponsored by Rep. Randy Feenstra (R- IA) and Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) that creates a tax exclusion for interest on loans secured by farmland and residential mortgages in towns under 2,500 population.
ACRE would lower interest rates for struggling farmers, ranchers, and rural homeowners.

The House STABLE Act (H.R. 2392) and Senate GENIUS Act (S. 1582) establish federal regulatory frameworks for payment stablecoins. Legislation should mitigate stablecoin risks while protecting against community bank disintermediation, which would harm local economies and consumers by reducing access to credit and banking services.
Prohibit Federal Reserve Master Accounts. Nonbank issuers should be prohibited from maintaining reserves in an account at the Federal Reserve. This would effectively create a “pass-through central bank digital currency,” increasing disintermediation risk and jeopardizing the integrity of our payments system and available credit.
Limit Permissible Activities. Issuers should be barred from paying yield, interest, or similar rewards on stablecoins. In addition, policymakers must close loopholes that would allow issuers to expand into banking activities without the existing risk controls and consumer protections to which banks are subject.
Avoid Big Tech Dominance. Big Tech or other non-financial firms must not be allowed to issue stablecoins through subsidiaries or affiliate with stablecoin issuers. These firms must not be allowed to leverage their scale and reach over consumers to dominate the payments industry, which would violate the longstanding U.S. separation of banking and commerce while introducing conflicts of interest and anticompetitive dynamics.

Oppose the Credit Card Competition Act, which would create new credit card routing mandates and force a costly overhaul of the payments landscape.
The legislation could end credit card reward programs and reduce access to credit for consumers solely to benefit the largest merchants, including Amazon and Walmart.

Independent Community Bankers of America