Financial Services Regulations: Status of GAO Recommendations to Enhance Regulatory Analyses and Interagency Coordination
Fast Facts
In response to the 2007-2009 financial crisis, the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 required federal agencies to issue hundreds of new financial regulations. Since 2011, we have conducted an annual study of these regulations—and made a total of 37 recommendations to help enhance regulatory analyses and interagency coordination.
We found that federal agencies have implemented 32 of these recommendations but 5 have yet to be fully implemented (as of October 15, 2019). For example, 3 agencies need to develop and implement policies and procedures to consistently meet requirements related to assessing potential impacts of new regulations on small entities.
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Highlights
What GAO Found
Of the 37 recommendations made to the agencies under this mandate, the agencies have taken actions to implement 32, and some agencies have not taken actions to fully implement five recommendations, as of October 15, 2019. Of the five recommendations not yet fully implemented, the agencies generally agreed with four and one agency neither agreed nor disagreed with one.
Why GAO Did This Study
Section 1573(a) of the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011 amended the Dodd-Frank Act and required GAO to conduct an annual study of financial services regulations. GAO has previously issued eight reports under this mandate and made a total of 37 recommendations to enhance regulatory analyses and interagency coordination.
This report describes the status of GAO’s recommendations and includes information about recommendations that have not yet been implemented. To conduct this work, GAO reviewed relevant documentation and interviewed officials from the agencies and an organization that had recommendations that had not yet been fully implemented, as of April 2019. The agencies and organization include:
- the Commodity Futures Trading Commission;
- the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau;
- the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation;
- the Financial Stability Oversight Council;
- the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency;
- the Office of Management and Budget;
- and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
GAO’s review examined the agencies’ and organization’s actions taken on these recommendations as of October 15, 2019.
Recommendations
GAO makes no new recommendations, but continues to monitor the implementation of prior recommendations. The Federal Reserve and SEC provided technical comments on the draft that we incorporated as appropriate. CFTC, CFPB, FDIC, FSOC, OCC, and OMB had no comments.