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The bill released by Sens. Tim Johnson and Mike Crapo would create a reinsurance fund to recoup losses on securities, establish a common securitization platform for the secondary mortgage market and open access to the secondary market for smaller lenders through a cooperative.
March 17 -
Sens. Tim Johnson, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, and Mike Crapo, the top Republican, received an overall warm welcome to their agreement on housing finance reform released Tuesday, after months of negotiation.
March 11
WASHINGTON Senate Banking Committee leaders said Friday they would hold a panel vote on April 29 to reform the housing finance system.
The timing of the vote is slightly later than expected. Many observers had anticipated Sens. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., and Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, would try to hold the markup prior to a Congressional two-week break that begins April 12. Scheduling it for shortly after the recess ends, however, allows lawmakers and staff to continue to work on issues surrounding the bill during the break.
Pinpointing a specific date also shows the panel is serious about trying to move the bill forward in the hopes of possibly bringing it to the full Senate later this year.
"After canvassing other members of the committee, we plan to schedule a markup of our bipartisan housing finance reform proposal on Tuesday, April 29th," said Johnson, who chairs the banking panel, in a joint press release. "From the start, members of the Committee have been extremely engaged on the issue and have demonstrated a sincere interest in advancing reform in a bipartisan manner. I look forward to a thoughtful debate in Committee as we seek to move reform one step closer to the finish line."
The bill would wind down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and create a system akin to federal deposit insurance for the mortgage market. The bill would create a new regulator, the Federal Mortgage Insurance Corp., that would backstop catastrophic losses on mortgage-backed securities that met certain criteria.
"It is critical that we vote on reforming our broken housing system," Crapo said. "We have produced a strong, bipartisan product, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to move this legislation forward and end the five year-plus status quo."
