Local industry members estimate that $700 million annually is sent in remittances from Hawai'i alone. Most often, these funds are sent to help friends and family who were left behind in foreign lands. With such a staggering amount of money involved, it made perfect sense when a tough new consumer-rights law — it takes effect in July — was passed last year.

But now state lawmakers, through Senate Bill 1397 and House Bill 1311, are poised to weaken this law by including an amendment that would exempt foreign banks from the state regulations. This would be a wrong move. Given that the industry is one whose consumers are predominantly immigrants who may not know their rights, strict regulations should be enforced throughout the whole system.

The push for an amendment came after aggressive lobbying from Philippine National Bank. Luis David, general manager of PNB in Hawai'i, argues that his bank is already regulated by both the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the state's Department of Financial Institutions, and shouldn't be forced to follow the new law. Another proponent of exemption is Nick Griffin, the commissioner of the state's Department of Financial Institutions, who says he'd like to prevent over-regulation.

But exemption means PNB and other foreign banks would not be subjected to what could be one of the most effective pro-consumer money transmitting laws in the nation. The law applies to big companies such as Western Union, as well as smaller local remittance agencies that can deal in millions of dollars. It requires licensing, bonding and provides consumers protections such as assurances of the exact rate of exchange, as well as guaranteed delivery time frames. Violations incur both criminal and civil penalties.

"The current regulations are in the public interest, that's why we supported it," said Ezra Levine, of the Money Services Round Table in Washington, D.C., an industry group representing the largest money transmitters such as Western Union, MoneyGram and American Express.

Granting an exemption to foreign banks can lead to lack of oversight and accountability, leaving the system ripe for abuse.

Helping family members should not mean leaving yourself vulnerable to exploitation. That should be the bottom line for legislators, whose priority should be the public interest and not the interest of foreign banks.