WASHINGTON-- Financial Services Committee Chairman Spencer Bachus issued the following comment in response to Deputy Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin’s defense of the rapid pace of the Dodd-Frank Act rulemaking process. In early March, all Republican members of the Committee wrote to regulators to express their concerns about the volume and pace of rulemakings under… Read more »
The legislation, introduced by Capital Markets Subcommittee Chairman Scott Garrett, helps clarify the risk retention rules required under Section 941 of the Dodd-Frank Act to make clear that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be held to the same standards as any other secondary mortgage market participants. A GSE loan purchase or asset-backed security issuance would not affect the… Read more »
The legislation, introduced by Chairman Bachus, suspends the compensation packages for executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and places all other employees on the General Schedule pay scale. Since September 2008 when Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac entered Federal conservatorships, the Federal Housing Finance Authority has approved multi-million dollar compensation packages for the GSEs’… Read more »
The legislation, introduced by Financial Services Committee Vice Chairman Jeb Hensarling, accelerates and formalizes the reduction in the size of the GSEs’ portfolios. As of January 2011, Fannie Mae retained portfolio was $777.059 billion, and Freddie Mac retained portfolio was $694.846 billion. The legislation would cap the GSEs portfolios to no more than $700 billion in the first year,… Read more »
The legislation, introduced by Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Randy Neugebauer, requires that FHFA gradually increase guarantee fees at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac over the next two years. Under the legislation, the FHFA will consider the market conditions in raising the GSEs’ guarantee fees to ensure that its actions do not disrupt a housing recovery.
On… Read more »
The legislation, introduced by Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity Subcommittee Chairman Judy Biggert, enhances the authority of FHFA’s Inspector General and expands reporting requirements to Congress.
On April 6, 2011, the Capital Markets Subcommittee approved H.R. 31 on a voice vote.
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For years, the Federal government used the GSEs to make homeownership available to people who posed a greater credit risk and would not have otherwise been able to obtain mortgage credit. GSE-manufactured demand boosted home prices to artificially high levels and fostered enthusiasm for the wave of exotic mortgage products that began to flood the market. In light of the risks… Read more »
The legislation, introduced by Rep. David Schweikert, prohibits the GSEs from offering, undertaking, transacting, conducting or engaging in any new business activities while in conservatorship or receivership. This restriction will reduce Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s market dominance and limit their size.
On April 6, 2011, the Capital Markets Subcommittee approved H.R. 1227 on… Read more »
The Small Company Capital Formation Act encourages small companies to access the capital markets — allowing them to invest and hire employees. The legislation increases the offering threshold for companies exempted from SEC registration under SEC Regulation A from $5 million — the threshold set in the early 1990s — to $50 million. The SEC has the authority to raise this threshold but… Read more »
The Capital Markets Subcommittee, chaired by Rep. Scott Garrett, will meet for a hearing to evaluate the proposed risk retention rule at 2 p.m. on Thursday, April 14 in room 2128 Rayburn.
The Dodd-Frank Act directs six federal regulators to jointly issue regulations forcing firms that jointly package loans and other assets into securities to hold a portion of the credit risk on… Read more »