Tester applauds housing finance reform ‘breakthrough’

Senator is a chief architect of Senate bill to reform housing finance market

(U.S. SENATE) – Senator Jon Tester, a member of the Senate Banking Committee and lead sponsor of the Housing Finance and Taxpayer Protection Act, today released the following statement after Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) announced an agreement to move forward with housing finance reform legislation:

“We’ve come a long way since the economic crisis, but the housing market remains our greatest piece of unfinished business.

Today’s agreement is a breakthrough that signals that folks are serious about creating a framework that will withstand the next financial crisis – a system that protects taxpayers, preserves the 30-year fixed rate mortgage, and ensures that small financial institutions can continue to serve rural communities.

I applaud Chairman Johnson and Ranking Member Crapo for moving forward with this legislation and look forward to marking it up before Easter recess so we can build a housing finance system that strengthens our economy and stands the test of time.”

Tester, a long-time member of the Senate Banking Committee, has held numerous hearings in recent years to examine the housing finance system and find ways to improve it.

Tester specifically shaped the Housing Finance Reform and Taxpayer Protection Act to make sure that smaller mortgage originators, such as the community banks and credit unions that dominate Montana’s housing finance market, are not crowded out of the mortgage market by larger competitors.

The new legislative text will be released later this week by Johnson and Crapo. It is based on many principles in Tester’s Housing Finance Reform and Taxpayer Protection Act, including winding down and eliminating Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, ensuring an affordable 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and protecting taxpayers in the event of a downturn in the housing market.

Tester’s Housing Finance Reform and Taxpayer Protection Act has 11 bipartisan co-sponsors including lead sponsors Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.).

Housing Finance Reform and Taxpayer Protection Act by les_braswell5524