Today, at a Terrorism and Illicit Finance Subcommittee hearing entitled “Illicit Use of Virtual Currency and the Law Enforcement Response,” Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, gave the following statement: As Prepared for Delivery Thank you for scheduling today’s hearing to examine the illicit uses of virtual currency and the law enforcement response. It is alarming how virtual currencies, especially newer ones, are being used to finance ter... Read more

The bill comes on the heels of Ranking Member Waters’ bill to prevent foreclosures on FHA Borrowers. A decade after the devastating foreclosure crisis, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services, continues the fight to ensure hardworking Americans can remain in their homes by introducing H.R. 6102, the Homeowner Mortgage Servicing Fairness Act of 2018. This bill would protect homeowners against foreclosure and increase the Federal Housing Fina... Read more

Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, released a statement in response to the release of Fannie Mae’s fourth quarter and full-year 2017 earnings report, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) decision for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to proceed with the allocation of funding to the Housing Trust Fund and Capital Magnet Fund in 2018. Fannie Mae’s financial documents indicate that FHFA will request a small draw for Fannie Mae from ... Read more

Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, gave the following opening statement at a full committee hearing entitled “Sustainable Housing Finance: An Update from the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.” As Prepared for Delivery Today we welcome back our former colleague and my good friend, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt. It has been more than two years since Director Watt last testified before us, and I must not... Read more

Today, top Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee sent a letter to Inspectors General at federal financial services agencies, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Justice, calling on them to root out any potential conflicts of interests in President-elect Donald Trump’s administration. Led by Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA), the letter was also signed by Ranking Members Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Spons... Read more

In light of more than 2 million fraudulent deposit and credit card account openings at Wells Fargo, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, and 10 Committee Democrats urged financial regulators to strengthen a proposed “clawback” rule regarding when a financial institution must revoke senior executives’ bonuses. In their letter, the Members underscored the need to strengthen rules regarding incentive-based compensation at financial institutions,... Read more

In response to a Democratic staff report highlighting shortcomings in personnel diversity policies and practices at seven major financial regulators, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, along with senior members of the panel and members of the Tri-Caucus, released the agencies’ responses to the report’s recommendations for enhancing diversity in the workplace and improving compliance with diversity statutes, particularly section 1116 of the ... Read more

During a hearing where members of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, or FSOC, appeared before the full Committee, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, underscored the need for a coordinating regulatory body in the wake of the financial crisis and highlighted its work to provide stability to investors, consumers and our national economy. Waters reminded Members of the damage caused by the crisis, while noting that repeated attempts by ... Read more

Federal financial services agencies have yet to reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the American population in their workforces – this according to a Democratic Financial Services Committee staff report released during a press conference today led by Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee. Senior Democratic Members in attendance included the Chairs of the Congressional Black Caucus, Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-NC) and Congressional Asian Pacific America... Read more

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is not alone in having racial disparities in its performance reviews, according to a report issued Thursday by the Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee. The report found that all seven bank, credit union and market regulators displayed significant disparities in employee evaluations, particularly among African-Americans who received lower-than-average scores at statistically significant levels at most of the agencies. Democrats requested th... Read more

On Thursday, November 5, 2015 at 10:00 a.m., Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, will join representatives and chairs of the tri-caucus to unveil a report, highlighting federal financial services agencies’ current compliance with federal diversity provisions, trends in performance review evaluations and workforce diversity throughout these agencies. During the event, participants will discuss their reaction to the data, which was compiled ov... Read more

Following the release of newly drafted non-bank servicer requirements today, Congresswoman Member Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, commended the Federal Housing Finance Agency for taking positive steps toward establishing protections to prevent American homeowners and taxpayers from falling victim to fraud and abuse. Waters, a strong advocate for safe, decent, affordable housing for all Americans, offered the following statement: “I commend Director... Read more

In advance of testimony by Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Mel Watt before the House Financial Services Committee, Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA) commended the Agency’s efforts to ensure that America’s housing market remains affordable and works for everyone. At a hearing to receive an “An Update from the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency,” which is charged with overseeing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Waters acknowledged the Government-Sponsored Enterprises’ (GSEs... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, praised today’s announcement by Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Mel Watt that he will finally fund the Housing Trust Fund, a permanent federal fund that focuses on providing support to states to build, preserve and ultimately increase the supply of affordable rental housing for extremely low- and very low-income families, including homeless families. Waters, a coauthor of the legislation ... Read more

Following the release of a report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) urging officials to take legal action against servicers and insurers over practices related to force-placed insurance, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, praised the FHFA for investigating the issue, and raised concerns about the report’s “staggering” findings that the government-sponsored enterprises are estimated to have overpaid for i... Read more

Following widespread concern over the actions of a number of independent mortgage servicers, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), top Democrat on the Financial Services Committee, has called on government regulators to take action that will protect homeowners from abuses that have led to stalled modifications, excess fees and even foreclosure. In a letter to Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry and Monitor of the National Mortgage Settlement (Settlement) Joseph Smith, Waters urged careful scr... Read more

Following the confirmation of Congressman Mel Watt (D-NC) as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Congresswoman Maxine Waters¸ Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, offered the following statement in strong support. “I am elated that after months of uncertainty and obstruction, the U.S. Senate has finally confirmed Congressman Mel Watt to head the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Mel has over 40 years of experience on issues related to housing – 20 as my friend and ... Read more

As the U.S. Senate prepares to vote on the nomination of Congressman Mel Watt (D-NC) to be Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the Democratic members of the House Committee on Financial Services have expressed their strong support for his nomination and urged his immediate confirmation. In a letter to Senate leaders Harry Reid (D-NV) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Watt’s 27 Committee colleagues underscored his more than 40 years of experience and knowledge working on housing and ... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters¸ Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, offered the following statement in reaction to the failure of the U.S. Senate to invoke cloture on Melvin L. Watt as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. “I am extremely disappointed that the U.S. Senate has blocked the nomination of Mel Watt to head the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Mel has over four decades of experience on issues related to housing and housing finance. He is highly respected on... Read more

The nomination of Rep. Mel Watt to be the regulator for housing finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac failed a key procedural vote Thursday because of strong Republican opposition.. President Obama nominated Watt, a veteran Democrat from North Carolina, in May to be director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. But attempts to bring his nomination to a vote by the full Senate failed Thursday as supporters were unable to muster the 60 votes needed to stop a threatened Republican filibuster.... Read more

At a press conference calling on the U.S. Senate to confirm Melvin L. Watt as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Congresswoman Maxine Waters¸ Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, offered the following statement in strong support. “I am pleased that the U.S. Senate is moving forward with the nomination of Representative Mel Watt to head the Federal Housing Finance Agency. I have worked very closely with Representative Watt on the Financial Services Committee for ... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, offered the following statement today in response to the Senate Banking Committee hearing on the nomination of Congressman Melvin L. Watt to be Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Ranking Member Waters previously endorsed Congressman Watt’s nomination stating that he is an individual that is “accepting, open-minded and collaborative – and he gets things done.” “Today, Congressman Melvin Watt demons... Read more

Today, Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), joined U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Lois Capps (D-Calif.), in sending a letter to eight executive agencies urging them to protect surviving spouses from foreclosure. This segment of the homeowner population – often women in their later years – faces unique circumstances that unfairly deprive them of opportunities to avoid losing their home. "Surviving spouses throughout the country have found themselves in this troubling situation,... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters offered the following statement today in response to news that President Barack Obama will nominate Congressman Melvin L. Watt to be Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. It is with high regard and great respect that I endorse the nomination of Representative Mel Watt to head the Federal Housing Finance Agency. We are at a crossroads in our economic recovery, and the FHFA must play a leading role in laying the groundwork for the long-term stability of the ho... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services, today commended a proposal by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) that would ban the payment of lucrative commissions and reinsurance fees to banks in return for their purchase of “force-placed” insurance. Currently, mortgage servicers are permitted to require homeowners to purchase property and casualty insurance when their policies lapse. Servicers and banks often benefit from arranging this insura... Read more