Patrick McHenryChairman

Washington, January 9, 2015 - House's TRIA Reauthorization and Dodd-Frank Clarification Bill Headed to President's Desk

The House once again overwhelmingly passed a long-term reauthorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) with taxpayer protection reforms this week. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-TX), included the reestablishment of NARAB and also a critically important clarification of Dodd-Frank to prevent further harm to jobs on Main Street.

Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) said the bill “clarifies that Main Street businesses, farmers and ranchers – who had nothing to do with the 2008 financial crisis – will no longer be subject to an onerous misinterpretation of the language of Dodd-Frank. Both former Chairman Barney Frank and former Chairman Chris Dodd, as well as Ranking Member Waters, have said this misinterpretation is a mistake."

Failure to clarify this “end user” provision of Dodd-Frank threatened to inflict serious harm on the economy, endangering up to 130,000 jobs and reducing capital spending by as much as $6.7 billion, according to the Coalition for Derivatives End Users. These are dollars that could otherwise be invested to sustain and grow jobs.

A day after the House passed the bill by a vote of 416-5, the Senate approved the bill 93-4 after resoundingly defeating an amendment by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to strip out the Dodd-Frank clarification that’s needed to protect Main Street small businesses, farmers and ranchers from Dodd-Frank’s onerous end user regulations. The Warren amendment failed by a vote of 31-66. The House bill now heads to the President.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Rep. Randy Neugebauer | House passes two of Neugebauer's bills on second day of session

It’s been a busy opening week of the 114th Congress for Lubbock's U.S. Rep. Randy Neugebauer, who had two bills pass through the House on Wednesday.

Weekend Must Reads

Politico Magazine | The (Real) Bank of America

Nobody set out to create the bank of America or make it this big. It’s an outgrowth of the classic Washington instinct—arguably an American instinct—to max out the credit card now and worry about the risks later. Its $3.2 trillion in debt doesn’t even include another $15 trillion worth of pension insurance, deposit insurance, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage insurance, and other government exposures that aren’t officially considered credit programs. I interviewed about 50 sources inside and outside government about the bank of America, and few of them think it is well-designed, well-managed or well-understood, even if much of what it does is well-intentioned.

Forbes | CFPB Fails To Protect Consumers

To some, the CFPB sounds like a great idea in theory—an entire federal agency dedicated to protecting consumers in the financial sector, if somehow the federal government had both the sophistication and skill set to always know how to best protect the American public. So it’s no surprise that in execution, the agency is squeezing out the financial options available to low-income Americans and basing its regulatory agenda on faulty data.

Washington Times | Broken promise? Obama’s America better for Wall Street than Main Street, stats show

But economists say the rosy statistics mask some real concerns about the underlying strength of the economy, noting that large numbers of Americans have left the job market, and companies are sitting on trillions of dollars of spendable money until they get more clarity from Washington. And beneath all that, a large segment of America's Main Street is becoming increasingly reliant on government help to make ends meet.

American Action Forum | 4 Reasons Taxpayers Should Be Wary of Executive Action on Housing

In a speech today in Phoenix, President Obama is expected to announce a reduction in Federal Housing Administration (FHA) annual premiums of 50 basis points, the latest in a concerted effort to expand credit availability. With recent pressure from affordable housing advocates, the announcement comes as no surprise. Yet this case of political pandering has serious policy implications. While a premium reduction certainly has its supporters, it does not come without a cost.

    On the Horizon 

January 13, 2015 10:00 a.m.
Committee Organizational Meeting