Majority Press Releases
Brown Demands Information From Fannie And Freddie On Private Equity Investment In Manufactured Housing
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - is demanding that government-sponsored enterprises (GSE’s) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, provide data on private equity-owned manufactured housing communities (MHC).“I am writing regarding the increase in private equity investment in and ownership of manufactured housing communities (MHC) and a troubling trend of rent increases and resident displacement in … Continue Reading
January 8, 2020
Brown to Sec. Carson: Stop Pretending Housing Segregation and Discrimination Don't Exist
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee blasted the Trump administration’s proposal dismantling the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule. The Trump Administration’s proposal significantly weakens the existing rule and HUD’s oversight of communities’ efforts to affirmatively further fair housing as required under the Fair Housing Act of 1968. The proposal also attempts to redefine the… Continue Reading
December 20, 2019
Brown, Menendez Lead Letter Asking JPMorgan Chase To Remember Its Own History When Responding To "Abhorrent" Racial Discrimination
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, and Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ), led a letter with Sens. Cortez-Masto (D-NV), Warren (D-MA), and Van Hollen (D-MD), demanding answers from JPMorgan Chase for their continued patterns of racial discrimination following an explosive, in-depth New York Times piece, which revealed documented accounts of JPMorgan Chase’s racist treatment of African American employees a… Continue Reading
December 19, 2019
Brown Applauds Reauthorization Of EXIM Bank, TRIA And Extension Of National Flood Insurance Program
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs released the following statement on passage of the “Further Consolidated Appropriations Act 2020”, which provides a historic seven year authorization of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM), a seven year authorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program (TRIA) and extends the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through September 30, … Continue Reading
December 18, 2019
Brown, Warren Call On GAO To Investigate CFPB's Failure To Enforce Fair Lending Rule
BROWN, WARREN CALL ON GAO TO INVESTIGATE CFPB’S FAILURE TO ENFORCE FAIR LENDING LAWS WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, and Senator Elizabeth Warren, Ranking Member of the Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection Subcommittee, are calling on the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) failure to conduct proper oversight and en… Continue Reading
December 13, 2019
Brown Blasts Trump Regulators For Weakening The Community Reinvestment Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee blasted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) for moving forward on a rule that overhauls the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The CRA - meant to address generations of segregation and discrimination in bank lending -a critical accomplishments of the Civil Rights Movement. “Today’s proposal underm… Continue Reading
December 13, 2019
Senate Banking Committee Democrats Demand Comptroller Otting Testify Before Committee
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs led a letter signed by all Committee Democrats demanding that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) Comptroller Joseph Otting testify before the Senate Banking Committee following the release of a proposed rule revising the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). “Revisions to the regulation for this foundational Civil Rights law will have a signif… Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Brown Opening Statement at Hearing On Oversight of the SEC
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled ‘Oversight of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’. Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Thank you Chairman Crapo, and welcome Chair Clayton. Over the past few years, in this Committee, we have seen the Trump Administration dismantle many of the protection… Continue Reading
December 9, 2019
Brown Statement on the Passing of Former Chair of the Federal Reserve Paul Volcker
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, today released a statement following the passing of Paul Volcker, former Chairman of the Federal Reserve. Volcker served as Chair under both Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. He was appointed by President Carter in 1979. He was re-nominated by President Reagan in 1983 and served until 1987. He started the Volcker Alliance in 2013 to support policies that … Continue Reading
December 9, 2019
Brown Demands Answers on Administration’s Policy and Personnel Choices Related to Homelessness
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, today demanded answers from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on the administration’s pick, Robert Marbut, to lead the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH). Brown pressed David C. Woll, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development, on the administration’s decision. Marbut has publicly proposed sev… Continue Reading
December 5, 2019
Brown Blasts Trump Designee to Lead Homelessness Council
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - today released the following statement after President Trump selected Robert Marbut to lead the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH). Marbut has publicly proposed several harmful ideas that would effectively punish homeless Americans and are deeply troubling coming from someone selected to lead the agency tasked with responding to homelessnes… Continue Reading
December 5, 2019
Brown Opening Statement at Hearing on Oversight of Financial Regulators
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled ‘Oversight of Financial Regulators.’ Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to start by noting that typically when we have the financial regulators testify, the Comptroller of the Currency is also here. Mr. Otting had a conflict today.… Continue Reading
December 3, 2019
Brown: Banking Watchdogs Put Short-Term Profits Over Hardworking Families
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - sent a letter ahead of the Senate Banking Committee’s December 5th hearing to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, as well as Financial Stability Oversight Council members including Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, FDIC Chair Jelena McWilliams, and NCUA Chair Rodney Hood, requesting that the regulators take action to address the threat of leveraged len… Continue Reading
November 25, 2019
Brown, Senate Dems Urge HUD To Reject Proposed Changes To The Fair Housing Act's Disparate Impact Standard
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee along with forty-five senators sent a letter to Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson, urging him to reject changes proposed in the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) August 19, 2019 Proposed Rulemaking: HUD’s Implementation of the Fair Housing Act’s Disparate Impact Standard (the Proposed Rule). The Proposed Ru… Continue Reading
November 20, 2019
Brown Opening Statement at Nominations Hearing
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing nominations to the Department of Treasury, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Export-Import Bank. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding today’s hearing on the nominations of Mr. Mitchell Silk, Mr. Brian Montgomery, Mr. David Woll, Mr. John Bobbitt, and Mr. Peter Coniglio. C… Continue Reading
November 20, 2019
Brown Opening Statement at TRIA Markup
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee delivered the following remarks at a hearing to markup S. 2877, the “Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2019.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: We lost thousands of our friends and neighbors on September 11th, 2001. Since that day, almost ten thousand first responders have been diagnosed with serious illnesses related to… Continue Reading
November 19, 2019
Brown, Senate Dems Demand HUD Reverse Eric Blankenstein's Promotion
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee and four Banking Committee Democrats are demanding the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rescind the promotion of Eric Blankenstein to Executive Vice President at the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae). In a letter to HUD Secretary Ben Carson, the Senators cited Blankenstein’s racist and sexist remarks, and the previous Inspector… Continue Reading
November 19, 2019
Brown Blasts Regulators for Approving BB&T and SunTrust Merger
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee blasted the Federal Reserve and FDIC for approving the merger BB&T and SunTrust Bank. The merger is the largest since the financial crisis, sending a signal that the agencies are open for business for further consolidation of the largest banks.“The merger of BB&T and SunTrust, along with the agencies’ gutting of regulation, will further decrease competition among … Continue Reading
November 7, 2019
Brown, Grassley Introduce Legislation To Provide Stable Housing For Foster Youth Transitioning To Adulthood
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, and Charles Grassley (R-IA), Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, introduced legislation to help provide stable housing options for foster care youth transitioning to adulthood. Each year, approximately 20,000 youth across the country age out of foster care. Unfortunately, this sudden transition places these vulnerable young adults at risk of homeless… Continue Reading
October 28, 2019
Senate Democrats Slam Carson For Undercutting Transgender Rights
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs along with thirty two Senators are demanding Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson retract his statements about the rights of transgender individuals, following dismissive remarks he made during a staff meeting according to the Washington Post.“We are deeply concerned that your comments undercut protections provided to transgender people… Continue Reading
