Legislative Activity

This Week’s Hearings:

  • Tuesday, January 28: The House Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing titled, “The Semi-Annual Report of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).” CFPB Director Richard Cordray will be the sole witness at the hearing.
  • Tuesday, January 28: The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing titled, “The Impact of the Employer Mandate’s Definition of Full-time Employee on Jobs and Opportunities.”  The hearing will focus on the impact of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) employer mandate.
  • Tuesday, January 28: The House Budget Committee will hold a hearing titled, “A Progress Report on the War on Poverty: Expanding Economic Opportunity.”
  • Tuesday, January 28: The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing titled, “Oversight and Reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank of the United States.” Authorization for the Export-Import Bank is set to expire at the end of 2014.
  • Wednesday, January 29: The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing titled, “The Annual Report and Oversight of the Office of Financial Research (OFR).” The sole witness will be Director of the OFR, Dr. Richard Berner.
  • Thursday, January 30: The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing to consider the nomination of Dr. Karen Dynan to be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury.

Regulatory Activity

Treasury Secretary Advisor on Housing Finance Policy Advocates Against HARP Expansion, Optimistic on GSE Reform

On January 22, Michael Stegman, Counselor to the Treasury Secretary on Housing Finance Policy, spoke at an event and advocated against expanding the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP). In conjunction with his remarks on HARP, Mr. Stegman also noted, “[w]e are hopeful that comprehensive, bipartisan housing finance reform is achievable this year.”

Office of Financial Research and The Financial Stability Oversight Council Holds Third Annual Conference

On January 23, the OFR and the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) held their third annual conference titled, “Mapping and Monitoring the Financial System.” The conference explored the interconnectedness among firms and markets, as well as related vulnerabilities in the financial system. The conference consisted of four sessions, which addressed: (1) liquidity and funding; (2) operations risk and counterparty risk; (3) swap and trade repositories; and (4) risks in central clearing counterparties.