Congress orders banking regulators to explain merger delays—publicly.

What it does

This bill requires the Inspector General of each federal banking regulator (the Federal Reserve, the Comptroller of the Currency, the FDIC, and the National Credit Union Administration) to review every 3 years how well their agency handles bank merger applications. The IG must measure processing times, identify delays, evaluate different review approaches, and assess the impact on safety, competition, and financial services availability. Each IG must report findings to Congress and publish them online; the regulator must then respond with a plan to implement recommendations.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core function is to establish recurring independent audits of federal banking regulators' merger review processes, with public reporting and agency response requirements. It is a transparency and accountability measure, not a substantive change to merger law itself.

What the text implies

• By measuring and publishing processing times, the bill may create implicit pressure on regulators to approve mergers faster, potentially at the expense of thorough safety and competition review if IG metrics become the primary performance benchmark.
• The requirement that regulators respond to IG recommendations 'to the extent such implementation is appropriate' gives agencies discretion to reject recommendations; the bill does not mandate compliance, only transparency of non-compliance.
• Public reporting of merger review procedures and timelines may provide strategic information to applicants and their counsel about regulatory bottlenecks, potentially enabling gaming of the process.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

This bill creates a transparent, recurring oversight mechanism for a regulatory process that directly affects citizens' access to banking services and financial stability. By requiring independent IG review and public reporting, it increases accountability and may reduce unnecessary delays in merger processing—benefiting consumers through faster service consolidation and potentially lower costs—while maintaining safety and competition safeguards.

Who stands to gain

• insured depository institutions (banks and credit unions) seeking faster merger approvals
• acquirers in pending or future merger transactions

Named in the bill

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), Inspector General (each agency), Congress, insured depository institutions, insured credit unions

Where it stands

2 cosponsors: 2 Republicans.

• Dec 9, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Dec 9, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Financial Services · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services”
• Dec 16, 2025 — Markup held in committee · Congress.gov: “Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held”
• Dec 17, 2025 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 52 - 0”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.