Shutdown Guidance for Financial Institutions Act

This bill requires Federal financial regulators to jointly issue guidance to financial institutions, encouraging them to work with consumers and businesses affected by a federal government shutdown. The guidance aims to help individuals, including furloughed federal employees, District of Columbia employees, and federal contractors, as well as businesses experiencing substantial income reductions due to a shutdown. Financial institutions would be encouraged to recognize the temporary hardship faced by these parties and consider prudent efforts to modify existing loans or extend new credit, consistent with safe-and-sound lending practices. Furthermore, the guidance would advise institutions to prevent adverse information from being reported to consumer reporting agencies in a way that harms the creditworthiness of affected consumers. The regulators must issue this initial guidance within 180 days of the bill's enactment and then issue a press release within 24 hours of any future shutdown to alert the public and financial institutions to its existence. Following a shutdown, the regulators are required to submit a report to Congress analyzing the guidance's effectiveness and update it if any shortcomings are identified.