Rep. French Hill (AR-02), Ranking Member of the Housing, Community Development, and Insurance Subcommittee on the House Financial Services Committee, and nine other Republican committee members, sent a letter to Federal Housing Finance Agency [1] (FHFA) Director Sandra Thompson urging oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac activities.
In the letter, the 10 House Financial Services Republicans write, “The Enterprises [Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac] have a history of venturing into new activities and product offerings that go well beyond their congressionally approved roles in the secondary market. The FHFA must do more to ensure there is appropriate transparency regarding any new products or activities that the Enterprises undertake and that these activities do not displace private firms or crowd out private capital.”
The members continued, “Therefore, we strongly urge you to take one of your first actions as the Director to finalize the long overdue rulemaking on Prior Approval of Enterprise Products, which was proposed in October 2020 and would ensure there is adequate oversight and transparency around new products and activities the Enterprises bring into the market.”
They conclude, “As the regulator and conservator of the Enterprises, the FHFA must conduct proper oversight of their operation and ensure that all their activities comply with their congressional charter. Pilot programs should not be operating as back doors for the Enterprises to expand into areas already being served by the private sector or to push a housing policy agenda that introduces unacceptable risk to taxpayers.”
To read the full letter, click here [1].