A quartet of senators from different corners of the political spectrum have joined forces to introduce the Jumpstart GSE Reform Act, a new bill designed to address the long-stagnant issue of housing finance reform.
The legislation is designed to prohibit guarantee fee increases from offsetting other government spending. Additionally, the bill would prohibit the sale of preferred shares without congressional approval and structural housing finance reform.
The bill is backed by four members of the Senate Banking Committee: Republicans Bob Corker of Tennessee and David Vitter of Louisiana, and Democrats Mark Warner of Virginia and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.
‘The reality is that if Congress were to spend g-fee revenue from the [government-sponsored enterprises] on other programs, reforming these mortgage behemoths would become nearly impossible,’ says Corker (pictured left). ‘At the same time, if the Treasury were to decide to sell its preferred share investment without Congress having first reformed our housing sector, we would just be returning to a time where gains are for private shareholders and losses are for taxpayers. Neither of these is an acceptable outcome, so I'm very happy that Senators Warner, Vitter and Warren have joined me in this effort, and I hope Congress will take the necessary steps to ensure housing finance reform can happen as soon as possible.’