It was a busy week in Washington that included committee passage of my legislation to rein in federal spending, urging the Secretary of Defense to revise a policy to better protect our service members and honoring a fallen soldier. Read more in this Week in Review. 

• In Honor of SSgt David Wyatt: SSgt David Wyatt, a Russellville native, was killed by a gunman last week in an attack at a military facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I spoke about his service and sacrifice on the Senate floor. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers.
  
  
• Investigate Planned Parenthood: I joined my Senate colleagues in requesting an investigation into Planned Parenthood following the release of videos showing senior executives discussing in horrific detail the organization’s role in harvesting organs of unborn babies. You can read the letters I sent to the Attorney General and Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
  
  
• Protecting Service Members at DoD Military Installations: I called on the Secretary of Defense Ash Carter to revise the Department of Defense policy to allow service members to carry firearms at military bases and reserve centers. Read the bicameral letter my colleagues and I sent to the secretary here. 

• Five Years of Dodd-Frank: There was no celebrating the fifth anniversary of Dodd-Frank. This law hurts community banks. We need a regulatory system that allows small banks to succeed instead of penalizing them. I was happy to approve provisions in the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill that reduces these overly burdensome regulations and eases the restrictions on our community banks. 

• Working to Normalize Relations with Cuba: When the Senate Appropriations Committee considered the Financial Services and General Government bill yesterday, my colleagues and I took the opportunity to add language that would move forward efforts to change U.S. policy toward Cuba. 

• Reining in Spending: The Senate Committee on Appropriations approved the Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) Appropriations bill. As chairman of the FSGG subcommittee, I worked to write a bill that puts us on the path to fiscal responsibility. The bill is $1.3 billion below the spending levels of the current budget year. This is a great step in promoting financial security. 

• Funding for Arkansas Higher Education: 23 Arkansas colleges, universities and other postsecondary institutions will share nearly $7 million to provide opportunities for academic development and assistance to students in the Natural State. Read what schools received funds from the U.S. Department of Education funding for Student Support Services. 

• Talking with KASU: In case you missed our interview with Jonesboro’s KASU radio, you can listen to the interview here. We talked about foreign affairs issues including Iran and the next steps for Congress to take on the nuclear deal, efforts to defeat ISIS and the need to support to our allies in the region.
  
  
• Honoring the Northwest Arkansas Council: The Northwest Arkansas Council celebrated its 25^th anniversary this week. The Council has transformed the region into an economic powerhouse. I recognized these achievements in the Congressional Record. 

When President Obama signed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act into law five years ago, he said he it was a victory for American people.  The President lambasted “powerful interest groups” who he claimed were working against this bill and said the law would “bring the shadowy deals that caused this crisis to the light of day.”

For all of President Obama’s populist rhetoric that day, the heavy-handed regulations generated from this law have done more to hurt the average American than it has any of the “big banks” or “investment houses” the President criticized that day.

The law does not end “too big to fail.” Instead, it creates the potential for permanent bailouts for major financial institutions. At the same time, it puts the squeeze on small community banks that are vital to rural America’s economy.

This one-size-fits-all approach to regulating our banks is not the answer. Community banks didn’t cause the 2008 financial crisis and they simply can’t afford the burdens of complying with the increased regulation. Dodd-Frank is pushing them out of business.

In small communities all over Arkansas, these banks are the only choice in town. Without community banks, it would be much more difficult for farmers and small businesses in rural America to get the credit they need to survive and thrive. Small business is the backbone of our economy, but community banks are the backbone of small business.

We need a regulatory system where small, medium and large banks can succeed. With Dodd-Frank, we created a system where some banks are too big to fail and others are too small to succeed.

Today, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed my Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill which includes a number of provisions that provide much needed regulatory relief for community banks and credit unions. Our bill includes common sense reforms to ease certain regulatory burdens rather than apply a one-size-fits-all approach to small financial institutions. 

As we mark the five year anniversary of the passage of the flawed Dodd-Frank law, it’s about time Congress stepped in to provide commonsense regulatory relief for the engines of economic growth and community development. 

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Boozman recognized the 25^th anniversary of the Northwest Arkansas Council in the Congressional Record, the official proceedings of Congress. 

Boozman’s office presented a copy of the Congressional Record statement at today’s annual meeting. The following remarks are printed in the Congressional Record: 

Mr. President, I want to recognize the hard work, dedication and achievements of the Northwest Arkansas Council, which is celebrating its 25^th anniversary. This organization helped transform Northwest Arkansas into an economic powerhouse. In 1990, business and community leaders created a cooperative regional business foundation with a focus on what is best for the region. Now, 25 years later, the Council has strengthened partnerships and achieved many successes. 

Early on, the Council recognized the importance of expanding the region’s infrastructure. It planted the seeds for development by pursuing the construction of a new regional airport, an Interstate to connect western Arkansas, and a massive two-ton water system to serve Benton and Washington counties. 

These priorities laid the foundation for the expansive growth and development of the region. Northwest Arkansas continues to flourish under the Council’s encouragement and vision. By focusing on the future and on mutually beneficial goals, the Council is a leader in visualizing and promoting investments that meet the needs of citizens and local businesses. In recent years, the Council’s goals have expanded toward growing the region’s workforce, including increasing the number of high school and college graduates and attracting top talent. 

This unique partnership encourages communities throughout the region to think about long-term goals and creates a strategic plan to accomplish them. What’s impressive is that the Council consistently achieves most of its goals, often ahead of schedule. 

The Council is a model for success. Economic development regions across Arkansas and throughout the country use the Council as a model, with hopes of achieving similar success. The Council has demonstrated the value of cooperation and collaboration, as well as the importance of keeping attention focused on common ground and shared interests. 

I congratulate the Northwest Arkansas Council on its 25-year commitment to growth and development and for continuing to make the region better through infrastructure improvements, workforce development and regional stewardship. I look forward to continuing to work with the Northwest Arkansas Council and seeing its future  achievements.

Lauren Coleman of KNWA spent a day with me on Capitol Hill earlier this week. Her report ran this morning and you can watch it here.