Today, at a full Committee markup of the Wrong Choice Act, a bill that repeals the most important aspects of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, gave the following opening statement: As Prepared for Delivery Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, this is one of the worst bills I’ve seen in my time in Congress. The Wrong Choice Act is a vehicle for Donald Trump's agenda to get rid... Read more

Last week, House Financial Services Committee Democrats led the Committee’s first Minority Day Hearing in 20 years in order to protect the economic security of hardworking Americans from a bill that prioritizes Wall Street over Main Street. The hearing, which featured testimony from Senator Elizabeth Warren and 10 other expert witnesses, reviewed Chairman Hensarling’s Wrong Choice Act, a nearly 600-page bill that repeals the most important aspects of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consume... Read more

After just 100 days in office, President Trump has undermined the economic security of the middle class and hardworking Americans by beginning to roll back financial regulations and putting reckless policies in place. The list below recounts Trump’s broken promises, threatening consumers, investors, and the economy at large: On the first day of his administration, Trump suspended a reduction to Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgage insurance premiums, which would have saved homeowners $5... Read more

This week, Committee Democrats led a Minority Day Hearing on the many problems with Chairman Hensarling’s Wrong Choice Act, a bill that would repeal the most important aspects of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, and put America on the road to another financial crisis. The hearing, which featured testimony from Senator Elizabeth Warren and other experts and community advocates, comes amid a wave of opposition to the bill. To date, over 130 groups have submitted lette... Read more

Today, at the historic Minority Day Hearing of the House Financial Services Committee, Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA) delivered the following statement: As Prepared for Delivery Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to the witnesses for joining us today, especially Senator Elizabeth Warren, who created the idea of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and gave the force behind making it a reality. Earlier this week, the Majority held a hearing during which their witnesses shared so man... Read more

On Friday, April 28, 2017, House Financial Services Committee Democrats will lead an additional hearing on H.R. 10, also known as the Wrong Choice Act. The hearing, referred to as a “Minority Day Hearing,” is the first hearing before the Financial Services Committee under the 115th Congress where Democrats can select the panel of witnesses. This hearing is historic in that the parliamentary maneuver Democrats successfully used to convene this hearing has not succeeded in the Committee in 20 year... Read more

Today, at a Terrorism and Illicit Finance hearing entitled “Safeguarding the Financial System from Terrorist Financing,” Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, delivered the following statement: As Prepared for Delivery Thank you, Mr. Chairman. One of the key issues this subcommittee will be looking at is the adequacy of current information-sharing authorities and the degree to which they strike the right balance between security and civil libe... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, joined by lead cosponsors Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-WI), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Monetary Policy and Trade, and Congressman Ed Perlmutter (D-CO), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Terrorism and Illicit Finance, introduced the “No Russia Exemptions for Oil Production Act” (the No REX Act), which prohibits the Trump Administration from providing special licenses to companies to engage in ... Read more

Today, at the only scheduled committee hearing to review Chairman Hensarling's Wrong Choice Act, House Financial Services Committee Democrats, led by Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA), submitted a letter to the Chairman requesting an additional hearing in order to thoroughly analyze how the legislation would impact consumers, investors, and the American economy. "Following the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, this Committee held 41 public hearings related to financial reform ... Read more

Today, at the only scheduled committee hearing to review Chairman Hensarling's Wrong Choice Act 2.0, a bill that would destroy the most important parts of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, gave the following opening statement: As Prepared for Delivery Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to the witnesses for being here today. There is only one explanation for why we are here d... Read more

In response to a Trump Administration statement denying that they will issue waivers to the sanctions on Russia to authorize oil drilling, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, made the following statement: “For months, I have sounded the alarm about Trump, his associates, their many suspicious ties to Russia and oil and gas companies, and their long game of getting sanctions on Russia lifted to line the pockets of their cronies. “The denial o... Read more

WASHINGTON - In response to reports that ExxonMobil has requested special permission from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control to be exempted from U.S. sanctions imposed in response to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and its violations of international law, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, made the following statement: “It is deeply disturbing that ExxonMobil is now seeking a waiver from the sanctions which the ... Read more

WASHINGTON - Today, in response to a pair of Trump Administration executive actions aimed at deregulating the financial services sector, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, made the following statement. “Here we go again. When it comes time for Trump to put up or shut up on his promises to hardworking Americans, all he puts up are giveaways to his buddies on Wall Street that come at the expense of the nation’s economic security and stabilit... Read more

WASHINGTON – In response to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (Consumer Bureau) lawsuit against Ocwen Financial Corporation for years of incompetent handling of mortgage accounts, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), issued the following statement: “Enough is enough when it comes to Ocwen’s history of repeated, abusive treatment of homeowners. Their behavior is simply inexcusable, especially since homeowners don’t have the right to choose their own mortgage servicer. The executives at O... Read more

WASHINGTON - In a letter to Janet Yellen, Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and Margaret Lewis, Chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Board of Directors, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, called for their commitment to replacing Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey M. Lacker with an individual whose interests align with those of the American public. The lawmakers noted that one quarter of ... Read more

WASHINGTON - Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, issued the following statement opposing the pending nomination of former Representative Scott Garrett, a staunch opponent of the Ex-Im Bank, to serve as its next president: “Despite all the claims Trump made over the course of his campaign, the selection of former right-wing Representative Scott Garrett to serve as the next president of the Export-Import Bank again makes clear that he ... Read more

Today, in response to the release of details of the updated version of the “Financial Choice Act,” Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, made the following statement: “The so-called Financial Choice Act is a piece of legislation that will essentially kill the most important aspects of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which was designed to prevent another financial crisis. Republicans and Donald Trump have once aga... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, delivered three letters to House appropriators in support of her ongoing effort to fight for those who have fallen victim to natural flood disasters. The letters call for a rejection of any fees on the National Flood Insurance Program’s (NFIP) policyholders in order to pay for President Trump’s U.S.-Mexico border wall, the forgiveness of NFIP’s debt, and increased funding for our nation’s flood maps. In... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, which oversees federal housing programs, urged her colleagues to meet the housing needs of the country’s most vulnerable populations during the federal appropriations process for fiscal year 2018. The Ranking Member proposed funding increases for a variety of federal housing programs, including the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants (McKinney-Ve... Read more

Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, issued the following statement in strong opposition to Chairman Hensarling’s abuse of his unilateral subpoena power and his excessive document requests from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Consumer Bureau): “The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has not only been faithfully compliant in responding to the Chairman’s endless requests for documents, but to date they’ve produced nearly 90,0... Read more

In response to the over 500,000 homeless Americans, including 120,000 homeless children, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services, along with 14 Democratic Members of Congress, introduced groundbreaking legislation that outlines a strategic plan to end homelessness. The Ending Homelessness Act of 2017 represents the solution this country needs to effectively end homelessness in America. “Homelessness is a tragic reminder of the poverty that ... Read more

Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, spoke on the House floor in support of H.R. 1219, the Supporting America’s Innovators Act, a bipartisan bill that would make it easier for more angel investors to finance startup companies and small businesses: As Prepared for Delivery H.R. 1219, the Supporting America’s Innovators Act, shows just how well we can work together to craft bipartisan solutions that support our nation’s innovators and th... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, gave the following opening statement at today's full committee hearing on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's (Consumer Bureau) Semi-Annual Reports to Congress with Director Richard Cordray: As Prepared for Delivery Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And thank you, Director Cordray, for joining us again to discuss the numerous ways in which the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau continues to fight for hardw... Read more

Today, in response to the U.S. Department of Labor’s announcement that it will proceed with a 60-day delay of the fiduciary rule, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services, made the following statement: “I am extremely displeased that the Trump Administration has delayed the fiduciary rule, which would finally protect seniors and hardworking Americans saving for retirement from unscrupulous and self-serving financial advisors. With less than ... Read more

Today, Congressman Dan Kildee (D-MI), Vice Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services, spoke on the House floor in opposition to H.R. 1343: As Prepared for Delivery H.R. 1343 eliminates important disclosures that private companies must provide to their employees in the event that they’re compensating those employees with stock. This bill would limit transparency. If companies want to pay their employees in stocks, they should have to disclose to their workers the risks associate... Read more