Mr. Thomas Richards' Opening Statement
WASHINGTON - The Committee on Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit held a hearing on Wednesday focused on legislation introduced by Congressman Andy Barr (KY-06) that would provide rural areas like Bath County, Kentucky, the right to petition to be properly reclassified as “rural” and relieve them from burdensome regulations that limit their ability to lend and help create jobs in their communities.
Kentucky’s Sixth District resident and fifth generation banker, Mr. Thomas Richards from Owingsville Banking Company, testified on behalf of the bill, which is titled H.R. 2672, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Rural Designation Petition and Correction Act. Mr. Richards shared his own personal, first-hand knowledge about the negative impact resulting from Washington-based bureaucrats’ decision to incorrectly consider Bath County, Kentucky ‘non-rural’ for purposes of lending rules that limit access to credit in the community.
Click here for the text version of Mr. Thomas Richards' opening statement.