Pittenger's banking bill wins House OK

Rep. Robert Pittenger's bill directing the federal government to study a regulation that limits certain withdrawals and transfers from savings accounts won unanimous approval Tuesday from the U.S. House of Representatives.

The bill takes aim at 1980s-era federal banking rules that restrict bank customers to no more than six withdrawals and transfers from their savings account per month.

The House approved it 422-0. It now heads to the Senate. (Video of Pittenger speaking today in support of his bill is below.)

Pittenger, a Republican whose district includes part of Mecklenburg County, has called the regulation obsolete in an era of online and mobile banking. In general, the limit on withdrawals and transfers applies when those transactions are done outside the bank, such as online or by phone.

Those supporting the bill include the National Association of Federal Credit Unions, which criticized the limit in a letter Tuesday to House Speaker John Boehner and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

Among other complaints, the association said credit union members could be hit with fees if they go over their monthly quota of transactions between savings and checking accounts. The association called the rule a "prime example of a regulation that hasn't been reconsidered by Congress ... in far too long."