[NEWS]

[dlv@bwalk.dm.com (Dr.Dimitri Vulis KOTM)]

American Banker, 10/24/96

Gonzalez pushing consumer safeguards for electronic banking

Rep. Henry B. Gonzalez called Wednesday for aggressive congressional
action to protect consumers in the emerging world of electronic banking.
Releasing a blueprint for legislative action, the Texas Democrat urged
Congress to: *Adopt public policy standards relating to privacy,
disclosure, access, equity, and financial reliability for electronic
banking products and services.

*Hold oversight hearings to assess how well the industry is serving the
consumer in these five areas.

*Enact laws if the industry's performance falls below minimum
congressional standards.

*Define financial transactions to include the exchange of financial
information as well as cash.

*Consider revising current consumer protection laws. "Many of the
federal consumer protection laws are nearly 30 years old, and they were
not designed to deal with the effects of these new technologies," said
Rep. Gonzalez, the House Banking Committee's ranking minority member.
The report, "Connecting Consumers: Consumer Issues and Emerging
Financial Technology," recommends subjecting banks and nonbanks to the
same laws and regulations in this area. Republican committee members and
banking regulators have been reluctant to issue rules that might hinder
the development of new electronic banking products.

[I.e., more regulation of electronic commernce. -DV]

---

<a href="mailto:dlv@bwalk.dm.com">Dr.Dimitri Vulis KOTM</a>
Brighton Beach Boardwalk BBS, Forest Hills, N.Y.: +1-718-261-2013, 14.4Kbps