Financial Inclusion Act - Statement:
Every individual or business that is operating legally should have the right to be banked in the state of Washington. Banks should have the ability to manage risk while also allowing for equal access to their services. The Act will declare that it is in the interest of the state to promote financial inclusion. It will recognize the unique role that banks play in enabling individuals to build financial prosperity and to facilitate commerce. The Act will also recognize the security and safety advantages for the state of having all its citizens in the regulated financial system.
Open letter to the Financial Institution, Economic Development & Trade Committee of the Washington State Legislature
Video recording - campaign kick-off
,Ask:
Assertions:
Every individual or business that is operating legally should have the right to be banked in the state of Washington. Banks should have the ability to manage risk while also allowing for equal access to their services. The Act will declare that it is in the interest of the state to promote financial inclusion. It will recognize the unique role that banks play in enabling individuals to build financial prosperity and to facilitate commerce. The Act will also recognize the security and safety advantages for the state of having all its citizens in the regulated financial system.
Open letter to the Financial Institution, Economic Development & Trade Committee of the Washington State Legislature
Video recording - campaign kick-off
,Ask:
- Financial Institution, Economic Development & Trade Committee of the Washington State Legislature to conduct in inquiry on the impact of bank de-risking on public safety and equal access.
- Financial Institution, Economic Development & Trade Committee of the Washington State Legislature should consider passing the Financial Inclusion law that ensures all Washingtonians have access to the financial system and to promote public safety.
- We call on the King County Council, the City of Seattle Council, and other cities impacted by bank de-risking to pass resolutions in support of unbanked businesses in their communities and the immigrant residents that rely on their services.
- We call on other states and Congress to pass financial inclusion laws that guarantee equal access to U.S. Financial System.
Assertions:
- De-risking is the process banks go through of terminating or restricting the business relationship of account holders they deem to be “high risk.” This process began in the US after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
- Banks have applied de-risking in a discriminatory manner denying small and immigrant-owned remittance companies accounts while continuing to serve larger operators and venture-backed upstarts.
- Far from improving security, bank de-risking has increased the risk to the US financial system by driving businesses into un-regulated channels. According to the World Bank, keeping individuals and businesses in regulated financial systems is a precondition for effective systems to mitigate risks and combat financial crimes.
- A study that looked at US Department of Treasury Civil Penalties and Enforcement data from 2008 and 2015 identified only one large remittance company that had violated Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rules. We believe if the data set on this study is expanded, it will show that larger operators are equally as likely to violate AML as smaller remittance companies.
- Thousands of well-paying jobs are in jeopardy, and millions of US residence are being denied access to culturally specific services as a result of bank de-risking.
- Bank de-risking has also caused a public safety crisis by forcing many of these unbanked businesses to store large amounts of cash in their premises; making them vulnerable to attacks by robbers.
Jurisdictions That Have Passed Resolutions in Support of Financial Inclusion
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Supporters
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