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On March 26, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey announced Executive Order No. 743, Promoting Fair and Lawful Access to Financial Services, directing Alabama's Banking Department to promote what the order describes as fair and lawful access to financial services for customers of state-chartered banking institutions.
The order states that under Alabama law, no person should be denied access to financial services because of the person's beliefs, affiliations, political views, or engagement in lawful activity. It directs the superintendent of banks to issue guidance to state-chartered banking institutions while also emphasizing that institutions must continue engaging in safe, sound, and legal business activities. The order does not create a private right of action, making it more of a supervisory directive than a substantive change to Alabama banking law.
Putting It Into Practice: Alabama's order builds on the broader federal push against perceived debanking (previously discussed here). State-chartered banks should monitor the Banking Department's forthcoming guidance, review internal policies governing customer onboarding, monitoring, and offboarding decisions, and watch for similar actions in other states.
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