Committee on Financial Services Passes 10 Bills to Reduce Housing Costs, Prevent Housing Fires, Support Small Businesses, Stand Up for Consumers and Protect Whistleblowers
Today, the House Financial Services Committee, led by Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) passed 10 bills:
H.R. 4495, the Downpayment Toward Equity Act is a bill offered by Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) that would authorize $100 billion for a new HUD grant program to provide financial assistance to first-time, first-generation homebuyers to put towards a downpayment and other upfront costs to purchase a home. This funding would help address multigenerational inequities in access to homeownership and help close the racial wealth and homeownership gaps in the United States.
Passed the Committee by a vote of 28-23.
H.R. 7977, the Promoting Opportunities for Non-Traditional Capital Formation Act is a bill offered by Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) that would amend the Securities Exchange Act to require the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation to provide educational resources and host events to promote capital raising options for traditionally underserved small businesses.
Passed the Committee by a vote of 29-24.
H.R. 7195, to provide for certain whistleblower incentives and protections is a bill offered by Representative Alma Adams (D-NC) that would modify the structure and function of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s (FinCEN's) recently mandated whistleblower program, ensuring that individuals who provide information that leads to successful enforcement are able to receive awards, as intended by the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (AMLA).
Passed the Committee by a voice vote.
H.R. 7981, the Public and Federally Assisted Housing Fire Safety Act of 2022 is a bill offered by Representative Madeleine Dean (D-PA) that would require the installation of either tamper resistant or hardwired smoke alarms in federally assisted housing.
Passed the Committee by a voice vote.
H.R. 6528, the Housing Temperature Safety Act of 2022 is a bill offered by Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY) that would establish a pilot at the Department of Housing and Urban Development to install and study the efficacy of temperature sensors in federally assisted housing to better ensure tenant health and safety.
Passed the Committee by a voice vote.
H.R. 68, the Housing Fairness Act of 2022 is a bill offered by Representative Al Green (D-TX) that would authorize increased funding for the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) and make a number of reforms to FHIP. It would also establish a new competitive grant program at HUD to support comprehensive studies of the causes and effects of ongoing discrimination and segregation, and the implementation of pilot projects to test solutions.
Passed the Committee by a vote of 28-24.
H.R. 3111, the Grandfamily Housing Act of 2021 is a bill offered by Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Representative Jim McGovern (D-MA) that would authorize $100 million to establish a pilot program at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to support the housing needs of intergenerational families through supportive services.
Passed the Committee by a vote of 29-24.
H.R. 6841, the Small Business Fair Debt Collection Protection Act is a bill offered by Representative Al Lawson (D-FL) that would amend the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) to extend protections that are currently in place for consumers to guard against certain predatory debt practices, to also apply to small business borrowers. Specifically, it would expand the definition of debt to include debt incurred from small business loans, restrict the means and methods by which collectors can contact small business debtors, and limit actions of third-party debt collectors who attempt to collect debts on behalf of another person or entity.
Passed the Committee by a vote of 29-24.
H.R. 5912, the Close the Loophole Act is a bill offered by Representative Jesus “Chuy” Garcia (D-IL) that would eliminate a regulatory exemption allowing commercial firms to operate FDIC-insured banks as industrial loan companies (ILCs) without being subject to the same consolidated supervision or other requirements that traditional banks are subject to pursuant to the Bank Holding Company Act. This bill also grandfathers existing ILCs to allow them to continue operating and to be sold to other entities, subject to certain limitations, and allows pending applications for an ILC to be considered for approval before September 2023.
Passed the Committee by a vote of 28-25.
H.R. 4586, the Risk-Based Credit Examination Act is a bill offered by Representative Ann Wagner (R-MO) that would provide discretion to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to prioritize its examination process of credit rating agencies as it deems appropriate. It does not remove the requirement that the SEC examine credit rating agencies annually.
