May 19, 2016

Brown Continues Push to Clear Banking Committee's Nominations Backlog

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) – ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs – today urged Senate Republican leaders to clear the growing backlog of key financial oversight, trade, and national security nominations.  

Brown’s push followed the Banking Committee’s approval today of five of the 20 executive nominations that the panel has received since January 2015: Lisa M. Fairfax and Hester M. Peirce to be Members of the Securities and Exchange Commission; Jay Lerner to be Inspector General of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Amias Gerety to be an Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions, U.S. Department of the Treasury; and Rhett Jeppson to be Director of the U.S. Mint.

“It is disgraceful that the Senate still hasn’t confirmed any of the 20 nominations that the Banking Committee has received since the start of last year,” said Brown. “These nominees are essential to promoting financial stability, protecting national security, and ensuring that American businesses of all sizes can compete on a level playing field with foreign competitors. The committee should move forward on all of the remaining nominees without further delay, particularly the President’s choices for seats on the governing boards of the Export-Import Bank and Federal Reserve.”

Status of Pending Nominees

 The following spreadsheets show actions on Banking Committee nominees since 2001. The tables list the names, positions, and agencies for each nominee, as well as the status of the nominations at each stage of the confirmation process, according to the Legislative Information Service.

Status of Banking Committee Nominees Since 2001: By Congress

Status of Banking Committee Nominees Since 2001: By Agency

Percentage of Banking Nominees Confirmed Since 2001: By Congress

Since 2001, the lowest share of nominees reported by the Banking Committee was 81 percent, during the 110th Congress. The committee's current record to date is 50 percent.

The lowest rate of full Senate confirmation of nominees was 80 percent, during the 113th Congress. The committee's current record is zero.

Until today, the Banking Committee had voted to approve just one nominee during this Congress: Adam Szubin to be Treasury’s Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes. His nomination has been pending for more than a year. The committee approved Szubin’s nomination in March, but the full Senate has yet to consider it. 

The Banking Committee has yet to hold hearings on the President’s nominees for seats on the governing boards of the Federal Reserve and Export-Import Bank. Al Landon and Kathryn Dominguez were nominated last year to serve on the Fed’s Board of Governors. Mark McWatters, a Republican who was recommended by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for a seat on the Export-Import Bank’s board, has been waiting four months for a hearing.

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