Legislative Activity Senate to Vote on TRIA Reauthorization Bill, Federal Reserve Membership This week, the Senate is expected to consider a bill (S. 2244) that would reauthorize the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) for seven years, while making few changes to the current program. On July 10, Senate leadership agreed to a list of four … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Banking Committee Likely to Markup GSE Reform Bill It appears as if the Senate Banking Committee is likely to hold a markup of legislation to reform the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), the “Housing Finance Reform and Taxpayer Protection Act of 2013” (S. 1217), this week; however, given the fluid nature of the situation, the … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate Appropriations Committee will continue to hold hearings on the FY 2015 Budget this week. See this week’s Budget and Appropriations Capital Thinking Blog Post for further details. The Senate will convene today, Monday, March 31, at 2:00 pm. After any leader remarks, the Senate will proceed to consideration of H.R. 4302, the … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House to Vote on Flood Insurance Bill After delaying plans for a vote last week, Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) is expected to hold a vote on the amended Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act (H.R. 3370) on Wednesday, March 5, under suspension of the rules. Among some of the changes, the latest draft … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Congress Examines A Series of Regulatory Reports Last week, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held a hearing to explore the annual report and oversight of the Department of Treasury’s Office of Financial Research (OFR) and the House Financial Services Committee probed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray … Continue Reading
On Tuesday, December 10, the Senate completed a series of procedural votes on the nomination of Rep. Mel Watt (D-NC) to head the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), voting 57-41 to confirm Rep. Watt as Director of the FHFA. The vote broke mostly along party lines. As Director, Rep. Watt has the authority to establish … Continue Reading
LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY Farm Bill Conference This Wednesday, October 30, marks the official start to the farm bill conference, which will be a public meeting involving the 41 House and Senate conferees. For months, agriculture leadership and their staff have met behind the scenes on an informal basis to start conversations on reconciling the two farm … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Farm Bill This week, agriculture leadership in both chambers will likely announce a date for the farm bill conference to begin. Last week, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) shared that the farm bill conference would begin when both chambers are in session, which means that a date will likely be scheduled … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity This past week has seen the evolution of the federal government shutdown and the slow emergence of a potential framework for a deal. Late in the week, President Barack Obama met separately with Senate Democrats, Senate Republicans, House Democrats and House Republicans. While President Obama continues to maintain he will not negotiate on … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity This Week’s Hearings: Thursday, October 10: The Senate Banking Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing titled, “Impact of a Default on Financial Stability and Economic Growth.” The presidents of the American Bankers Association (ABA), Investment Company Institute (ICI), National Association of Realtors, and Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) are scheduled … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity This Week’s Hearings: Tuesday, October 1: The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing titled “Housing Finance Reform: Fundamentals of a Functioning Private Label Mortgage Backed Securities Market.” This is the first in a series of eight hearings the committee will hold on specific aspects of the housing finance market, with the goal … Continue Reading
LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY House Nutrition Title Bill Last week, the House passed its nutrition title bill, the Nutrition Reform and Work Opportunity Act of 2013 (H.R. 3102), by a vote of 217 to 210. The bill would cut Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps) funding by $39 billion over the next 10 years, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity FCC Nominations The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation is expected to hold a confirmation hearing on Republican Michael O’Reilly’s nomination to serve as a Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) after Congress reconvenes in September. Tom Wheeler, President Barack Obama’s nominee to chair the FCC, has already been voted out … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Financial Services Committee Sends PATH Act to the Floor The House Financial Services Committee approved the Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act of 2013, also known as the PATH Act (H.R. 2767). The PATH Act now awaits consideration by the House. The housing finance reform bill includes provisions to wind-down the government … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Financial Services Committee Members Announce Bill on Housing Finance Reform House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) and Committee Members Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Randy Neugebauer (R-TX), and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) announced their plans to introduce the “Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act” or PATH Act to reform housing finance. Highlights … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Student Loan Interest Rates The agreement reached on a student loan interest rate package last week has been disrupted after a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) score estimated a $22 billion (over 10 years) cost to the proposal. A bipartisan group consisting of Democratic Senators Joe Manchin (WV), Tom Carper (DE), and Dick Durbin … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Farm Bill. On July 12, the House narrowly passed a revised “agriculture-only” Farm Bill (H.R. 2642) by a vote of 216 to 208, with 12 Republicans voting against the bill. The bill repealed the 1949 Act, which would authorize commodity programs to be permanent law. Less than 218 votes were needed to … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Tax Writing Committee Continues Meetings on Reform The Senate Finance Committee has continued its series of closed-door committee meetings on tax reform, recently issuing an options paper addressing charitable and tax-exempt organizations. The most recent paper is available here. The Committee’s paper on charitable and tax-exempt organizations was the ninth topic covered … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity This Week’s Hearings: Tuesday, June 11: The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee will hold a hearing titled “Reducing Duplication and Improving Outcomes in Federal Information Technology.” Wednesday, June 12: The Senate Indian Affairs Committee will hold a confirmation hearing on the nomination of Yvette Roubideaux to be the Health and Human … Continue Reading
