Dr. Tom Miller, Jr.
- Law-abiding Americans and businesses should be assessed on financial risks, not on their politics or religion. Further, fair access to banking should not depend on which political party holds power in Washington.
A key characteristic of federalism is the constitutional division of powers that defines which powers belong to the national government and which belong to state governments. The nature of the integrated national financial system in the U.S., however, means that states cannot solve national problems that arise when financial services cross state lines.
That is particularly true of debanking, which can affect law-abiding individuals and businesses operating within a financial system that crosses state borders.
Mississippians and local businesses can be debanked if they are denied banking services without warning or a clear explanation. To address this alarming national trend, the Trump administration and Congress should establish a federal standard to protect equal access to banking services.
Across the country, people and businesses in lawful industries have lost access to financial services. For example, Wex Gunworks, a Florida firearms dealer, had its accounts closed after decades of banking with the same company, despite no laws being broken or regulations violated. No law-abiding business should lose access to banking simply because its line of work is unpopular with advocacy groups, regulators, or elected officials.
Under the Obama and Biden administrations, regulators used subjective standards such as “reputation risk” to pressure banks to deny services to lawful businesses. Neither Democrats nor banks should punish lawful businesses or individuals for their political, religious, or ideological views.
The answer to this national issue belongs in Washington, not in Jackson or any other state capital. A patchwork of state laws could make it more difficult and more expensive for banks to serve customers across state lines.
Mississippi lawmakers recognized this risk when they rejected the “Mississippi Fair Banking Standards Act” during the 2026 Legislative Session. The bill’s aim was understandable, even laudable, but its state-level policy provisions were not, especially for national banks. State-by-state requirements and red tape could limit consumer choice, complicate bank operations and, at the end of the day, raise costs for businesses and customers.
Burdensome state regulations could also make it harder to create a clear and consistent federal standard to end the practice of debanking.
Last year, President Trump signed Executive Order 14331, “Guaranteeing Fair Banking for All Americans,” directing banking regulators to remove “reputation risk” from supervisory standards. Federal agencies have since taken important steps to do so, but that progress should continue so that “debanking” efforts would be prohibited by federal law.
The administration can and should establish a federal standard that ensures banks and regulators cannot use politics or religion to decide who has access to a bank account. Every American deserves this access.
In Congress, the House has already passed the FIRM Act, which would codify the prohibition of reputation risk in banking supervision, and the Senate can and should extend that progress. Congress should also modernize the outdated Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money-laundering requirements so financial institutions can focus their resources on identifying and preventing genuine financial crime to protect customers.
Mississippians are known for being warm and welcoming. That spirit has earned our state the title “The Hospitality State.” Hospitality means treating people fairly and welcoming those who play by the rules. Our banking system should reflect those same values. Law-abiding Americans and businesses should be assessed on financial risks, not on their politics or religion. Further, fair access to banking should not depend on which political party holds power in Washington.
