New regs for Friday: Proprietary trading, money transfers, food terrorism

Friday’s edition of the Federal Register contains new rules for proprietary trading, money transfers and to prevent acts of terrorism on the nation’s food supply.

Here’s what is happening:

Proprietary trading: The Commodities Futures Trading Commission is finalizing a proprietary trading rule from the Dodd-Frank financial reform act. The new rule, which goes into effect in April, contains certain proprietary trading prohibitions and restrictions for banks and other financial institutions. Proprietary trading is when a bank uses its own money, rather than customers’ money, to conduct trading activities. 

{mosads}Money transfers: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is moving forward with a plan to regulate non-bank money transfer companies like Western Union. The agency, which originally announced the plan last week, will publish a proposed rule on the money transfers in Friday’s Federal Register, as it considers how to define “large” money transfer companies. 

Deaf: The National Association of the Deaf has filed a petition asking the Federal Communications Commission to reconsider a rule. The rules come from the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010.

Food safety: The Food and Drug Administration will hold two public meetings to discuss a rule it is considering that would require food facilities to address hazards that could be linked to terrorism. The rule comes from the Food and Safety Modernization Act, which is intended to protect the nation’s food supply from a terrorist attack that would affect food people eat. The first meeting will be held Feb. 27 in Chicago.

Defense contracts: The Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security is considering a new rule that would require certain defense contracts be given priority over other non-defense contracts. The rule comes from the Defense Production Act Reauthorization of 2009.