I Hate ACORN

[Truthmatters]

Attorney General's Statement On
OCC Effort To Undercut States' Ability To
Regulate National Banks

January 8, 2004

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal today attacked the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for issuing new regulations that preclude states from enforcing laws against unfair and predatory lending practices against national banks. OCC took the action over the objections of attorneys general from all 50 states.

"This arrogant, appalling effort to usurp legitimate state consumer protection laws will be challenged by Connecticut and other states and should be promptly struck down by the courts or by Congress,” Blumenthal said. “We will sue the OCC if necessary to protect state laws that safeguard our vital economic and consumer interests, and a tradition of dual regulation that has existed for more than a century."

"This blatant attempt to shield banks from legitimate state law enforcement should prompt strong outrage and outcry from a bipartisan coalition of states, which we now hope to continue to help lead. We have appreciated the steadfast support of our state banking commissioner in our past efforts to preserve consumer protection authority and we will fight this misguided power grab by the OCC. Despite this threatened federal overreaching, we will continue the fight against banking abuses, such as predatory lending, in Connecticut," the Attorney General said.

 

[AllieBaba]

Yeah, Janet Reno was one. 'Nuff said.

 

[AllieBaba]

Bush Financial Regulation Overhaul Includes Federal Insurance Regulator
"The Bush administration is proposing a sweeping overhaul of the way the government regulates the nation's financial services industry from banks and securities firms to mortgage brokers and insurance companies.

The Fed would be given broad authority to oversee financial market stability. That would include new powers to examine the books of any institution deemed to represent a potential threat to the proper functioning of the overall financial system.
The proposal, which will be outlined Monday in a speech by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, is certain to set off heated debates within different sectors of the financial services industry and in Congress, where some Democrats are likely to complain that the proposal does not go far enough to crack down on abuses."

Oh, look...they knew the Dems would stop it ahead of time. How cute.

 

[Truthmatters]

So the fact that all 50 states AGs were against this Bush move to protect the banks from any attempts to police their Home loan markets to you just means that what?

 

[AllieBaba]

All 50?
Lol.

 

[Mad Scientist]

All 50? Lol.

I thought there was 57 states now.

 

[Truthmatters]

CSBS | News Release - State Groups Support Preservation of Federalism in Banking Act



National Governors Association
Hall of States, 444 N. Capitol Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20001

National Conference of State Legislatures
444 North Capitol Street NW, Suite 515, Washington, D.C. 20001

Conference of State Bank Supervisors
1155 Connecticut Avenue NW, 5th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20036


October 7, 2004

STATE GROUPS APPLAUD BILL CLARIFYING STATE REGULATORY AUTHORITY IN FINANCIAL SERVICES ARENA

Washington, D.C. -- State groups representing governors, state legislatures, and bank supervisors today announced their strong support of a legislative initiative to clarify congressional intent on the extent to which states have the authority to protect consumers living within their borders from the activities of unscrupulous financial institutions.

The National Governors Association (NGA), the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) commended Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) for introducing "The Preservation of Federalism in Banking Act," a bill that would set standards for federal preemption of state consumer protection laws and clarify visitorial rights of state officials seeking to enforce applicable federal or state laws.

"State regulators and law enforcement officials have a long history of protecting the citizens of their states," said Mississippi Banking Commissioner John Allison, Chairman of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. He added that state banking regulators have a proven track record in investigating and resolving abusive financial practices and identifying perpetrators of fraudulent financial schemes and in some cases, returning millions of dollars to consumers after investigations have identified bad actors.

"State legislatures are on the front lines of where businesses interact with consumers and are in the best position to craft legislation to prevent unfair and deceptive practices occurring within their states," Said Illinois Representative Frank Mautino, Chairman of the NCSL Financial Services Committee

The National Governors Association has actively opposed the OCC's rulemaking on the grounds that congressional action has consistently preserved state authority over national banks in the area of consumer protection and fair lending. "Recent regulatory interpretations of federal law will seriously undermine the ability of states to protect their own citizens in the long-term," noted NGA Executive Director Raymond C. Scheppach.

The three state groups issued the following statement on Thursday:

"We are united in our support of Congressman Frank's efforts to clarify federal preemption standards and underscore the ability of state Attorneys General to bring action to enforce applicable state and federal consumer protection laws against national banks and their subsidiaries."
* * *

Information Contacts:

John Ryan, Executive Vice President, Conference of State Bank Supervisors, (202) 728-5724, or e-mail [email protected].

Diane Duff, Director of Economic Development and Commerce, National Governors Association, (202) 624-5306, [email protected]

Cheye Calvo, Director of Financial Services, National Conference of State Legislatures, (202) 624-8661, [email protected]

 

[AllieBaba]

I thought there was 57 states now.

Only in Obamaland.

 

[Truthmatters]

So you are going to just ignore these facts?

 

[AllieBaba]

Yeah. Barney Frank fought long and hard, as did Congress, to prevent any regulation from taking place. Your crap is the Congressional CONCESSION to what the Bush Amin had been saying needed to take place for years.

Here's Barney Frank, who will likely wind up in prison, talking about FM & FM in '04:

"I want to begin by saying that I am glad to consider the legislation, but I do not think we are facing any kind of a crisis. That is, in my view, the two government sponsored enterprises we are talking about here, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are not in a crisis. We have recently had an accounting problem with Freddie Mac that has led to people being dismissed, as appears to be appropriate. I do not think at this point there is a problem with a threat to the Treasury.

I must say we have an interesting example of self-fulfilling prophecy. Some of the critics of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac say that the problem is that the Federal Government is obligated to bail out people who might lose money in connection with them. I do not believe that we have any such obligation. And as I said, it is a self-fulfilling prophecy by some people.
So let me make it clear, I am a strong supporter of the role that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac play in housing, but nobody who invests in them should come looking to me for a nickel--nor anybody else in the Federal Government. And if investors take some comfort and want to lend them a little money and less interest rates, because they like this set of affiliations, good, because housing will benefit. But there is no guarantee, there is no explicit guarantee, there is no implicit guarantee, there is no wink-and-nod guarantee. Invest, and you are on your own.

Now, we have got a system that I think has worked very well to help housing. The high cost of housing is one of the great social bombs of this country. I would rank it second to the inadequacy of our health delivery system as a problem that afflicts many, many Americans. We have gotten recent reports about the difficulty here.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have played a very useful role in helping make housing more affordable, both in general through leveraging the mortgage market, and in particular, they have a mission that this Congress has given them in return for some of the arrangements which are of some benefit to them to focus on affordable housing, and that is what I am concerned about here. I believe that we, as the Federal Government, have probably done too little rather than too much to push them to meet the goals of affordable housing and to set reasonable goals. I worry frankly that there is a tension here.

The more people, in my judgment, exaggerate a threat of safety and soundness, the more people conjure up the possibility of serious financial losses to the Treasury, which I do not see. I think we see entities that are fundamentally sound financially and withstand some of the disastrous scenarios. And even if there were a problem, the Federal Government doesn't bail them out. But the more pressure there is there, then the less I think we see in terms of affordable housing.

The Tax Foundation - Barney Frank on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2003

 

[Truthmatters]

Barney Frank was trying to allow the states to keep the power to regulate the industry.

Bush owned the congress and the house at the time.

How the hell can you say they could not pass the legislation they wanted to pass at the time?


Are you insane?

 

[DavidS]

but I hate DOW 8500 even more

thanks, but no thanks, Mac, time for new blood in the White House

Congratulations on making the right decision.

 

[AllieBaba]

Bush has never owned Congress.

And the house is a part of Congress, dear. THey aren't separate. It's the House and the Senate, and together they are Congress.

"Congress of the United States, legislative branch of the United States government. Congress is composed of two chambers with equal powers: the 100-member Senate and the 435-member House of Representatives."
Congress - MSN Encarta

 

[AllieBaba]

Bush wanted FEDERAL OVERSIGHT and Congress said it wasn't needed, dumbass. Over and over again.

 

[Truthmatters]

So you are saying that the republican party refused to go along with Bush to stop the sub prime mess?

 

[Care4all]

Obama's one of the dumbasses who landed the Dow where it's at.

Bush admin called for regulation 5 years ago.

THE BUSH ADMIN also requested banks to become creative in order to get more of the poor in to homes....in 2002 and 2004 it was a BUSH initiative...so, you can't have it BOTH WAYS Allie.... Fact Sheet: President Bush Calls for Expanding Opportunities to Homeownership

what bush was suggesting with regulation in 2003 had NOTHING TO DO with subprime loans and regulation of such....it was recommendations to improve accounting methods and inaccuracies of fannie...some accounting trickeries and crookedness of theirs...

the subprime loans to anybody mess began in 2005=2007, fannie/freddie were NEVER A PART of that type of loans....other mortgage brokers were though, who fannie and freddie had nothing to do with.

 

[AllieBaba]

I'm saying the Dem Congress refused to go along.

 

[AllieBaba]

THE BUSH ADMIN also requested banks to become creative in order to get more of the poor in to homes....in 2002 and 2004 it was a BUSH initiative...so, you can't have it BOTH WAYS Allie.... Fact Sheet: President Bush Calls for Expanding Opportunities to Homeownership

what bush was suggesting with regulation in 2003 had NOTHING TO DO with subprime loans and regulation of such....it was recommendations to improve accounting methods and inaccuracies of fannie...some accounting trickeries and crookedness of theirs...

the subprime loans to anybody mess began in 2005=2007, fannie/freddie were NEVER A PART of that type of loans....other mortgage brokers were though, who fannie and freddie had nothing to do with.

Look at a timeline, ducks.

 

[Care4all]

Look at a timeline, ducks.

Fact Sheet: President Bush Calls for Expanding Opportunities to Homeownership

and this?

Fact Sheet: President Bush Calls for Expanding Opportunities to Homeownership


En Español




Today's Presidential Action


Today, President Bush announced a new goal to help increase the number of minority homeowners by at least 5.5 million before the end of the decade. The President's aggressive housing agenda will help dismantle the barriers to homeownership by providing down payment assistance, increasing the supply of affordable homes, increasing support for self-help homeownership programs, and simplifying the home buying process & increasing education. The President also issued "America's Homeownership Challenge" to the real estate and mortgage finance industries to join in his effort to increase the number of minority homeowners by taking concrete steps to tear down the barriers to homeownership that face minority families.
Background on the President's Homeownership Agenda

Buying a home is the biggest single investment most people will make in their lives. Homeownership is a cornerstone of America's healthy, vibrant communities, and benefits individual families by helping them build stability and long term financial security. But sadly, homeownership is out of reach for many Americans -- especially for minority families. For millions of these families, homeownership is a distant, unreachable dream.

President Bush has a comprehensive agenda to help increase the number of minority homeowners by at least 5.5 million before the end of the decade.

While the overall homeownership rate has reached an all time high of nearly 68 percent, the statistics show a clear and persistent homeownership gap:


Despite increases in minority homeownership during the decade of the 1990s, large persistent gaps between non-Hispanic whites and minorities remain and have narrowed only slightly;

According to HUD, in 1994 the minority homeownership rate was 26.8 percent below the rate for white households;

The African-American homeownership rate was 27.5 percentage points below the white rate, and the Hispanic rate was 28.8 percentage points below the white rate;

The second quarter Census data for 2002 shows that non-Hispanic whites have a 74.3% homeownership rate, while African-Americans have a 48% rate and Hispanics a 47.6% rate; and

Asian-Americans and other races have a 53.7% homeownership rate.
A new report from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) -- which analyzed the most recent homeownership data from the U.S. Census Bureau -- highlights the many barriers that prevent minority families from owning their own home. The barriers include:


A lack of inventory of affordable single-family housing available for sale in many areas where a majority of residents are minority families;

A need for down payment assistance, which affects minority families to a greater extent than non-Hispanic whites because they have less accumulated wealth that can be used to help children with down payments;

A lack of access to affordable mortgage credit;

A lack of understanding of the homebuying process;

Weak credit histories, often arising from a poor understanding of financial matters and where financial counseling is required;

A lack of information about available homeownership programs in the community; and

Language difficulties or cultural differences.
It doesn't have to be this way. The President's agenda will help tear down the barriers to homeownership that stand in the way of our nation's African-American, Hispanic and other minority families by:


Providing Downpayment Assistance. The single biggest barrier to homeownership is accumulating funds for a down payment. The President has proposed $200 million annually for the American Dream Downpayment Fund to help roughly 40,000 families a year with their down payment and closing costs.

Increasing the Supply of Affordable Homes. The President wants to dramatically increase the supply of homes available to low and moderate income families. The President has proposed the Single-Family Affordable Housing Tax Credit, which will provide approximately $2.4 billion to encourage the production of 200,000 affordable homes for sale to low and moderate income families.

Increasing Support for Self-Help Homeownership Programs. The President's budget triples funding for organizations, such as Habitat for Humanity, that help families help themselves become homeowners through sweat equity and volunteerism in their communities.

Simplifying the Home Buying Process & Increasing Education. When buying a home today a buyer faces a confusing and complicated process. The President and HUD want to empower homebuyers by simplifying the home buying process so consumers can better understand and benefit from cost savings. The President also wants to expand financial education efforts so that families can understand what they need to do to become homeowners.
The President also believes that government alone can't close America's homeownership gap. It is critical that our government challenge the private sector to take concrete steps to tear down the barriers to homeownership that face minority families. The President is issuing "America's Homeownership Challenge" to the real estate and mortgage finance industries to join in his effort to increase the number of minority homeowners by 5.5 million families by the end of the decade. Many organizations have already responded to the President's challenge by committing to:


Substantially increase by at least $440 billion, the financial commitment made by the government sponsored enterprises involved in the secondary mortgage market, specifically targeted toward the minority market;

Launching twenty-five different local initiatives across the nation, geared toward eliminating the specific homeownership barriers faced by minority families in those communities;

Raising $750 million in below-market-rate investments by 2007, which will work in collaboration with local homeownership initiatives and be targeted to heavily minority program areas;

Pursuing strategic partnerships in 20 top housing markets between homebuilders, lenders, local officials, and community leaders to develop approaches that address the local challenges to building homes for minority families living in urban centers;

Establishing faith-based housing partnerships between the participants and at least 100 churches, mosques, synagogues, and other faith-based institutions;

Aggressively developing new mortgage products so that conventional market alternatives are available to combat the predatory loan products that are disproportionately targeted to minorities;

Creating new mortgage products to meet the unique needs of recent immigrants;

Dramatically expanding financial education efforts for minorities, providing financial counseling to at least 380,000 minority families, and taking measures at the local level to reduce predatory lending; and

Establishing multilingual, consumer-oriented internet Web sites designed to help minorities overcome barriers to homeownership, including creation of a central data bank of affordable housing programs made available to real estate agents when working with clients.
For more information on the President's initiatives please visit www.whitehouse.gov.

 

[Truthmatters]

I'm saying the Dem Congress refused to go along.

The Dem congress did not exsist back when this was done.