Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, gave the following statement in response to changes that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Mark Calabria made to Treasury’s ownership stake in the government sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
“It is simply… Read more »
Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, sent a letter to Mr. Steven Mnuchin, Secretary of the Treasury, urging him to listen to concerns from all stakeholders and halt any significant changes to our housing finance… Read more »
On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the following bills offered by House Financial Services Committee Members, and managed on the House floor by Congressman Michael San Nicolas (D-GU), Vice Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee.
H.R. 2852, Homebuyer Assistance Act of 2019, a bill that would make it easier for homebuyers to buy a home with a… Read more »
Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, delivered the following remarks during her first policy speech in the 116th Congress:
As Prepared for Delivery
Thank you for the very warm welcome, and to the Center for American Progress for holding this event. CAP’s research and policy work are highly respected and a valued resource… Read more »
In remarks at the Financial Services Committee markup of its Oversight Plan, which is required by House rules to outline Committee work during the 114th session of Congress, Ranking Member Maxine Waters underscored some of her top priorities for the coming two years.
Acknowledging a modest departure from the more contentious oversight plan of the 113th Congress, the Ranking Member… Read more »
Following President Obama’s announcement that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) will reduce annual mortgage insurance premiums, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, praised the action as critical for the nation’s homebuyers.
In October, 2014, Waters and Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Housing… Read more »
WASHINGTON — Rep. Maxine Waters' plan to let banks control a sole entity to issue government-backed mortgage securities is dead-on-arrival, but her proposal still significantly alters the housing reform debate.
A different housing finance bill in the Senate — which envisions private-market competition for securitizing loans — has greater bipartisan support and is scheduled for a… Read more »
Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, released a comprehensive legislative proposal to reform the housing finance market. Known as the Housing Opportunities Move the Economy (HOME) Forward Act of 2014, the legislation ends Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and creates a new, cooperative-owned securities issuer.
For months, Waters has been… Read more »
A top House Democrat has offered her own take on overhauling the mortgage market, introducing legislation as Congress begins to move toward comprehensive legislation.
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) unveiled her spin on the bipartisan priority Thursday, dubbing it the Housing Opportunities Move the Economy Forward Act.
“Reforming a 10 trillion dollar housing finance market is an… Read more »
WASHINGTON — Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., unveiled a new plan Thursday to overhaul the housing finance market, entering what's becoming a crowded field of proposals to restructure the mortgage system.
The discussion draft, titled the Housing Opportunities Move the Economy Forward Act, would unwind Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, like many of the competing plans in both the House and… Read more »
Yet another proposal for winding down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and overhauling the nation’s housing finance system will be put before Congress on Thursday, this one by Representative Maxine Waters of California, the ranking Democratic member of the Financial Services Committee.
The major distinction of Ms. Waters’s proposal is that it would make the mortgage lending system more like… Read more »
Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, today applauded Senators Tim Johnson (D-SD) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) for reaching agreement on an effort to reform the housing finance system.
She released the following statement:
“I am encouraged by the news that Senators Johnson and Crapo have reached agreement on principles for the reform of… Read more »
Calls for principal reduction, more equal access to market
After several critical years in the wake of the housing meltdown, the market recovery is continue to take shape.
However, the recovery could be much stronger if housing reform sees immediate action, specifically the pursuit of more widespread principal reduction, which would provide the best return for taxpayers, argues Rep.… Read more »
WASHINGTON — With the leading House Republican plan to overhaul the mortgage finance market stuck in limbo, several Democrats have begun work on alternative proposals that could further divide support for the GOP bill.
Rep. Jeb Hensarling, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, introduced his legislation to unwind Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and remove a government backstop… Read more »
A third bill will be introduced to the US Congress to tackle the last major remnant of the financial crisis: reform of the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Maxine Waters, the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, is the latest lawmaker to put forward a plan to overhaul Fannie and Freddie. The final version will probably reflect a combination of at least… Read more »
Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, today released the following statement in response to President Barack Obama’s speech outlining his plan for housing finance reform in Phoenix.
“I’m pleased that the President is making housing finance reform a top priority, and has outlined an approach that is consistent with our recently-released… Read more »
Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee released the following statement in response to committee passage of the inaptly-named “Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act” or “PATH Act” (H.R. 2767). H.R. 2767 is a Republican bill that would unwind Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and remove any government support from the secondary mortgage… Read more »
House Democrats, led by Financial Services Committee Ranking Member Maxine Waters, today released a “set of critical core principles” they believe should be part of legislative efforts to address the future of housing finance reform. Since the beginning of the 113th Congress, Democrats on the Financial Services Committee have held a series of briefings, roundtables, and caucuses on… Read more »
Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, delivered the following opening statement at today's full Committee hearing. The hearing, entitled, “A Legislative Proposal to Protect American Taxpayers and Homeowners by Creating a Sustainable Housing Finance System,” examined draft legislation proposed by Republicans to “reform” our nation’s housing… Read more »
Today, in response to Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling’s release of a proposal to reform the nation’s housing finance system, Financial Services Committee Ranking Member Maxine Waters released the following statement:
“I am strongly disappointed in the Chairman’s legislation, which is little more than an attempt to reinvent America’s housing finance system using the same kind… Read more »
Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, convened her second bipartisan panel this morning on Capitol Hill to discuss various proposals for reform of the Government-Sponsored Enterprises and the secondary mortgage market. Today’s discussion, builds on the April session by providing an opportunity for industry stakeholders to share their point… Read more »
Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, will moderate her second bipartisan panel discussion on plans to reform the nation’s secondary mortgage market. The panel discussion will be held on Friday, June 28th on Capitol Hill.
In April, Ranking Member Waters hosted the first in a series of panel discussions on the topic of how to best provide… Read more »
Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, made the following opening statement today at the full committee hearing, titled “Beyond the GSEs: Examples of Successful Housing Finance Models without Explicit Government Guarantees.” Ranking Member Waters in her statement reveals “that while other countries may invest fewer resources in homeownership… Read more »
In her opening statement today at a hearing of the House Committee on Financial Services, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the Committee, contested the notion that regulatory oversight is an impediment to recovery in the housing finance market. The title of the hearing called by the Republican majority is “Building a Sustainable Housing Finance System: Examining… Read more »
Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, convened a bipartisan panel this morning on Capitol Hill to discuss various proposals for reform of the Government-Sponsored Enterprises and the secondary mortgage market.
“The goal of this panel is to emphasize the imperative for reform, inform our members, and hopefully spur the Financial… Read more »
