Newsroom
Trump Nominates Pam Patenaude for Deputy HUD Secretary
The White House announced today that President Donald Trump intends to nominate Pamela Patenaude to serve as Deputy Secretary for Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Patenaude is currently president of the J. Ronald Terwilliger Foundation for America’s Families, an organization that seeks to elevate housing’s place on the political agenda.
Administration Releases Tax Plan Outline
The Trump Administration released April 26 a one-page outline of tax reform principles and objectives it intends to pursue this year. The document calls for reductions in individual and corporate tax rates to be paid for, at least in part, by economic growth the Administration estimates the proposed changes will create and by eliminating tax deductions and other tax "breaks."
Mortgage Bankers Association Releases GSE Reform Proposal
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) last week released a white paper detailing its recommended approach to reforming the Government-Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the housing finance system. The paper was developed by MBA’s Taskforce for a Future Secondary Market.
Financial Services Committee Chair Introduces Draft Financial Regulatory Reform Bill
House Financial Services Committee Chair Jeb Hensalring (R-TX) released on April 19 a discussion draft of comprehensive financial regulatory reform legislation he intends to introduce soon. The Committee has scheduled a hearing on this legislation, titled the CHOICE Act, for April 26 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time. Hensarling introduced similar legislation last Congress.
New Hensarling CHOICE Act to Include Further Changes to CFPB, FHFA
House Financial Services Committee Chair Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) earlier this week released a chart outlining several new provisions he intends to include in comprehensive financial reform legislation (The CHOICE Act) that he plans to introduce by the end of the month. The chart highlights areas of the new bill that will differ from similar legislation Hensarling introduced last Congress.
HUD Releases Housing Credit Tenant Data Report
On April 12, HUD published Understanding Whom the LIHTC Program Serves: Data on Tenants in LIHTC Units as of December 31, 2014, providing demographic and economic data about Housing Credit tenants, including race, ethnicity, family composition, age, income, use of rental assistance, disability status, and monthly rent burden of tenants.
Bills to Regulate PACE Loans Introduced in House and Senate
Lawmakers in both chambers of Congress Wednesday introduced companion bills that would subject Property Assessed Clean Energy loans (PACE loans) to federal mortgage regulations.
Bill to Classify Muni Bonds as High-Quality Liquid Assets Introduced in the Senate
Earlier today, Senators Mark Warner (D-VA) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) introduced legislation that would allow large banks to count some of their municipal bond investments, including tax-exempt housing bonds, as high-quality liquid assets (HQLAs) under federal bank liquidity standards. The legislation, which has not yet been assigned a bill number, is expected to be referred to the Senate Banking Committee.
Representatives Introduce Bill to Classify Muni Bonds as High-Quality Liquid Assets
Earlier this week, Representative Luke Messer (R-IN) introduced the Municipal Finance Support Act of 2017 (H.R. 1624). The legislation would allow large banks to count some of their municipal bond investments, including tax-exempt housing bonds, as high-quality liquid assets under federal bank liquidity standards.
FHFA Delays Implementation of GSE Single Security and Platform
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) earlier today released a report providing an update on its efforts to develop a common structure and Common Securitization Platform (CSP) for mortgage-backed securities (MBS) guaranteed and sold by the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. FHFA is developing the common security and trading infrastructure to facilitate more efficient trading of GSE MBSs and to eliminate pricing disparities between Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac MBSs.
Representatives Tiberi and Neal Introduce Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act
Late yesterday, senior Ways and Means Committee member Pat Tiberi (R-OH) and Committee Ranking Member Richard Neal (D-MA) introduced the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2017, H.R. 1661. The bill is companion legislation to the bill Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT) introduced earlier this month.
IRS Publishes MRB Purchase Price Limits and Safe Harbors for 2017
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) last week released Revenue Procedure 2017-27, which establishes the nationwide average purchase price limits and average area purchase price safe harbors for the Mortgage Revenue Bond (MRB) and Mortgage Credit Certificate (MCC) programs.
