Leading opposition to final passage of the “Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act” on the House Floor, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, criticized the measure for rolling back critical borrower protections put in place by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, undercutting the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act and encouraging the kind of predatory lending practices that previously brought the American economy to the brink of co... Read more

Following an announcement from the Department of Labor (DOL) that it has proposed for public comment rules on the provision of investment advice for retirement assets, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, issued a statement in strong support of the Administration’s move to modernize its “fiduciary duty” rule, which seeks to ensure that those providing investment advice are actually working in the best interest of retirement savers. Waters app... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, today delivered testimony in front of the House Rules Committee, stating her strong opposition to two measures, the “Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act,” (H.R. 650) and the “Mortgage Choice Act,” (H.R. 685) . In her testimony, the top Democrat described the consequences of enacting these measures, stating that they would rollback critical consumer protections enacted under Dodd-Frank and leave ... Read more

Following an announcement by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) of its intent to draft rules to deter payday lending abuse, and in advance of President Obama’s trip to Birmingham, Alabama to speak about the matter, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, underscored her support for the Bureau’s action. Waters, a strong advocate of the agency’s successful work to protect American consumers, offered the following statement: “I join th... Read more

Following the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) vote to finalize a rule expanding an exemption allowing businesses to raise up to $50 million from the public markets, six leading Democratic lawmakers on the Financial Services Committee expressed concern with the consequences of preempting critical investor protections at the state level. Led by Congressman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee and Congressman Stephen Lynch (D-MA) the members voiced the... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, today called on the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to issue formal guidance amending previous guidance that explicitly encouraged the “one strike and you’re out” policy, in which Public Housing Authorities evict residents on the basis of criminal activity that may, or may not, be under their control. The policy, first promulgated during the now debunked “War on Drugs,” encourages hardlin... Read more

During opening remarks at a Financial Services Committee markup of nearly a dozen legislative proposals today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the Committee’s Ranking Member, outlined a number of areas where Democrats are willing to with Republicans to find bipartisan compromise. However, the Ranking Member also stressed that while Democrats are willing to work with their Republican colleagues, concerns remain that the members of the majority will continue their attempts to undercut Dodd-Fra... Read more

Today, as the House of Representatives considered the Republican budget proposal on the House Floor, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, waged a devastating critique of the proposal as harmful to our nation’s economic stability, to our housing market and to American consumers. Waters criticized the shortsightedness of a Republican budget that would invite a return to the risky days that led to the crisis, by repealing important prohibitions aga... Read more

Today, the Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee strongly defended the right of American workers and retirees to receive honest financial advice free of double dealing and conflicts of interests. At the second in a series of congressional forums designed to address issues facing America’s middle class, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) defended the Obama Administration’s forthcoming fiduciary duty rule, and pledged to oppose Republican efforts to undermine it. The series of forums,... Read more

In remarks prior to testimony from Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairwoman Mary Jo White, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, discussed her recently released draft legislation, the “Bad Actor Disqualification Act.” The proposal would increase transparency by establishing a more vigorous, fair and public process for granting waivers of bad actor disqualifications at the SEC. The measure, which already boasts the support of labor, consume... Read more

Washington, D.C. – As Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Mary Jo White prepares to testify before the Financial Services Committee today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, has unveiled a proposal to increase transparency and establish a more vigorous, fair and public process for granting waivers of bad actor disqualifications. Certain provisions in securities laws allow law-abiding companies to engage in routine activities with le... Read more

A coalition of nearly every Democratic Member of the House Financial Services Committee is calling on Republicans to make good on their pledge to address poverty by holding hearings on ending homelessness in America. In a letter sent today to Chairman Jeb Hensarling (D-TX), 25 Committee Democrats requested the majority pay increased attention to the issue by hosting a series of hearings on the status of homelessness in our nation. Led by Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the Committee’s Rankin... Read more

For the second time this week, House Republicans today rejected a Democratic motion to bring legislation to reauthorize, reform and re-energize the Export-Import Bank up for a vote. Congressman Denny Heck (D-WA) joined Congressman Al Green (D-TX) in leading the effort to bring the measure, H.R. 1031, to the Floor of the House using a parliamentary procedure called the "previous question." Entitled the “Promoting U.S. Jobs through Exports Act of 2015,” the legislation would create and sustain cri... Read more

At a hearing to consider Republican proposals to “preserve consumer choice” today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, expressed skepticism with the majority’s assertion that these proposals would accomplish anything for our nation’s consumers. Waters pointed out the irony of the hearing’s theme, noting that most proposals to be discussed are harmful to consumers and actually weaken Wall Street watchdogs like the Consumer Financial Protectio... Read more

Today, Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) Co-Chairs Reps. Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) and Keith Ellison (D-MN) joined Financial Services Committee Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA) in calling on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to finalize its rule requiring publicly-traded corporations to publicly disclose the ratio of the compensation for their CEO to the compensation of their median worker. The three lawmakers urged completion of the so-called “Median Worker Pay Ratio Rule” via a l... Read more

Today, House Republicans rejected a Democratic motion to bring legislation to reauthorize, reform and re-energize the Export-Import Bank up for a vote. Using a parliamentary procedure called the "previous question," House Republicans blocked an effort to bring H.R. 1031, the “Promoting U.S. Jobs through Exports Act of 2015” to the House floor. This legislation, which has 190 Democratic cosponsors, extends Ex-Im’s charter for seven years, increases its lending authority, and modernizes the Bank’s... Read more

At today’s Financial Services Committee hearing with Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA) continued to express her disappointment with the Republican refusal to ratify the International Monetary Fund (IMF) quota reform package. In her remarks, Waters underscored the importance of approving the package, and laid out the harmful impact delaying these reforms will have on global stability. Waters delivered these remarks during today’s hearing on “The State of the Interna... Read more

Following the release of a report she requested, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, reacted to findings related to diversity and inclusion at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Last year, Waters led eight other Democratic members of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations in requesting reports by Inspectors General at the CFPB and all other financial regulators, to assess whether any personnel practices and policies have... Read more

During today’s hearing to review the semi-annual report of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, praised the agency’s work to diligently protect consumers and ensure fairness in the financial system, even in the face of historic Republican efforts to undermine, eliminate and render the agency ineffective. Waters noted in her remarks the agency’s tremendous track record, delivering $5.3 billion in r... Read more

As the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) testifies on Capitol Hill today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, is raising serious concerns about the Republican majority’s newest effort to undermine the consumer agency through its unilateral subpoena authority. In a letter to Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), Waters raised concerns with a new policy regarding the issuance of subpoenas that affords the CFPB onl... Read more

Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-43), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, announced that the Housing Authority of the County of Los Angeles (HACoLA) will receive a $738,000 federal grant to continue employing its “Resident Service Coordinators” who are integral in connecting public housing residents with much-needed supportive services and resident empowerment activities in the community. Even more important, these coordinators link the County’s seniors to resources and ... Read more

Less than one day after four leading Democratic lawmakers introduced legislation to reauthorize, reform and re-energize the Export-Import Bank, support for the bill has dramatically intensified. A growing total of more than 190 Democratic members of the House of Representatives have signed on to cosponsor the legislation, entitled the “Promoting U.S. Jobs through Exports Act of 2015,” (H.R. 1031). The surging support for the Democratic measure, in addition to the 58 Republicans who have supporte... Read more

In opening remarks during today’s semi-annual Humphrey-Hawkins hearing with Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, touted the effectiveness of the Federal Reserve’s post-crisis monetary policy and outlined the remaining work left to do to close the wealth gap – which has been exacerbated by the devastating effects of the recent financial crisis. Waters asserted that while our economy continues to witness u... Read more

Four leading Democratic lawmakers have introduced legislation to reauthorize, reform and re-energize the Export-Import Bank, an agency that supports hundreds of thousands of U.S. jobs and levels the playing field so that American businesses are able to compete successfully in global markets. Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, joined Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-WI), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Monetary Policy and Trade, Congressman De... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, released the following statement in reaction to President Obama’s announcement that he is directing his administration to move forward with a proposed rulemaking that will protect families by imposing a “fiduciary standard” on retirement advisors, which will ensure they put the interest of average Americans ahead of their profits. She released the following statement. “I’m pleased that President Obama is focu... Read more