Majority Press Releases
Brown Opening Statement at Hearing to Assess U.S. Sanctions on Russia
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 opening statement at today's hearing entitled, "Assessing U.S. Sanctions on Russia: Next Steps." Brown's remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow. Senator Sherrod Brown - Opening StatementHearing: "Assessing U.S. Sanctions on Russia: Next Steps" March 15, 2017 Mr. Chairman, thank you for calling this important hearing, and for your… Continue Reading
March 14, 2017
Brown Opening Statement on Reauthorization of the 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 opening statement, as prepared for delivery, at today's hearing entitled, "Reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program, Part I." Brown's remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow. Senator Sherrod Brown - Opening Statement Hearing: "Reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program, Part I" March 14, 2017 Thank… Continue Reading
March 13, 2017
Brown Commends Raphael Bostic's Appointment as Atlanta Fed President
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 commended the appointment of Raphael Bostic to serve as President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. Bostic is the first African-American chosen to lead one of the 12 regional Fed banks in the central bank's history. "Mr. Bostic is a well-qualified economist and public servant who has devoted his career to studying and fighting inequality. His appoi… Continue Reading
March 10, 2017
Banking Committee Democrats Question Carson on Plans to Slash HUD Budget
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A group of Democrats on the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs today questioned Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson on a report that the Trump Administration has considered slashing the department's fiscal 2018 budget by more than $6 billion. The lawmakers stressed that cuts of this magnitude would be devastating for children and families nationwide, and would contradict Carson's testimony to the Banking Committee during his Jan. 12 con… Continue Reading
March 9, 2017
Brown Opening Statement at Markup of Bipartisan Securities Bills
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 opening statement, as prepared for delivery, at today's markup of a slate of bipartisan securities bills. The bills address access to securities research (S. 327, Heller-Peters), capital formation for small businesses (S. 444, Heitkamp-Heller), refunding overpayment of Securities and Exchange Commission fees (S. 462, Heller-Heitkamp-Toom… Continue Reading
March 2, 2017
Brown Asks Treasury to Assess if President Trump's Global Business Ties Could Violate Sanctions, Anti-Terrorism Laws
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today asked the U.S. Treasury Department to assess whether President Trump and his family's investment partners and business associates from Russia and other countries have violated U.S. anti-terrorist financing, sanctions, and money laundering laws. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Brown said that Trump's refusal to divest from investments that pose potential conflicts of interest raises concerns about his and his family's exte… Continue Reading
February 14, 2017
Brown Opening Statement at Hearing on Semiannual Monetary Policy Report
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 opening statement, as prepared for delivery, at today's hearing on "The Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress." Brown's remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow. Senator Sherrod Brown - Opening Statement:Hearing on "The Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress"Feb. 14, 2017 Thank you, Chairman Crapo. Chair Yell… Continue Reading
February 14, 2017
Brown Statement on Plan to Gut Wall Street Reform
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee - today issued the following statement regarding House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling's (R-TX) proposal to undo the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. "It took less than three weeks for House Republicans to show their hand on how they will renege on candidate Trump's campaign promises to hold Wall Street accountable and help working A… Continue Reading
February 14, 2017
Brown, Reed, Merkley Urge Fed to Strengthen, Finish Rules to Curb Wall Street Commodity Ownership
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Jack Reed (D-RI), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) urged the Federal Reserve to strengthen and complete its proposed rules to curb Wall Street banks' ownership of physical commodities, such as oil, coal, and metals. Brown, the ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee; Reed, a senior member of the Banking panel; and Merkley outlined their concerns in a letter to Fed Chair Janet Yellen. The Senators commended the Fed's work on the proposed r… Continue Reading
February 2, 2017
Brown Opposes Repeal of Anti-Corruption Rule for Energy, Mining Companies
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 defended a bipartisan rule that makes it harder for oil, gas, and mining companies to engage in bribery and corruption in developing nations. The Senate is now considering a measure to repeal the rule. The transparency rule, which was finalized in 2016, protects U.S. citizens and investors from having millions of their dollars vanish into the pockets of … Continue Reading
January 24, 2017
Brown Statement on Banking Committee's Approval of Carson for HUD Secretary
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 after the committee approved Ben Carson's nomination for Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Brown voted in favor of Carson's nomination, which now goes to the full Senate for a confirmation vote. "Dr. Carson is not the nominee I would have chosen to lead HUD, due to both his lack of experience and his often troubling p… Continue Reading
January 24, 2017
Brown Pushes for Banking Committee Nominees to Provide Tax Returns
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee - is pushing to require Cabinet-level nominations under the Banking panel's jurisdiction to release their tax returns. Brown's proposal would change Banking Committee rules to require Cabinet-level nominees to submit the three most recent years of their tax returns to the Committee before their confirmation hearings. It also would require sub-Cabinet level nominees to p… Continue Reading
January 17, 2017
Banking Committee Democrats: Trump Administration Needs Cordray as Consumer Watchdog
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A group of Senate Banking Committee Democrats today praised Richard Cordray's outstanding work as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), emphasizing the need for his leadership at the agency in President-elect Donald Trump's Administration. In a letter to Cordray, whose term expires in July 2018, the Senators highlighted his accomplishments as the nation's top consumer watchdog in protecting servicemembers, seniors, students, and other hardworking Americ… Continue Reading
January 12, 2017
Brown Opening Statement at Hearing on HUD Nominee Ben Carson
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 opening statement, as prepared for delivery, at today's hearing on the nomination of Dr. Benjamin Carson to be Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Brown's remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow. Senator Sherrod Brown - Opening Statement:Nomination HearingJan. 12, 2017 Thank you, Chairman Crapo, for hol… Continue Reading
January 11, 2017
Banking Committee Democrats Question Surge in Wells Fargo's Overdraft Income
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A group of Senate Banking Committee Democrats today asked Wells Fargo's chief executive to explain whether the bank's recent surge in income from overdraft charges had any connection to the scandal over its fraudulent sales practices. In their letter to Wells Fargo Chief Executive Timothy Sloan, the Senators expressed concern with a recent Financial Times report on how the bank's income from overdraft charges grew by 7.5 percent between July and September. That was five times… Continue Reading
January 10, 2017
Brown Urges Trump to Reject Latest Attack on Consumers
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee - today urged President-elect Donald Trump to reject efforts by predatory lenders and their allies in Congress to gut protections for working Americans by removing Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray before his term expires in July 2018. "Under Richard Cordray's leadership, the CFPB has returned $12 billion to servicemembers, seniors, and worki… Continue Reading
January 9, 2017
Brown, Merkley Push Back on OCC's Plan for Financial Technology Charter
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) today expressed concerns that a new federal charter for financial technology firms could weaken consumer protections, limit competition, and threaten financial stability. The Senators outlined their concerns in a letter to the head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which announced earlier this month that it would for the first time begin offering banking licenses to "fintech" firms. The OCC's move allows … Continue Reading
January 4, 2017
Brown Statement on President-Elect Trump's SEC Nominee Jay Clayton
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, today issued the following statement on President-elect Trump's nomination of Jay Clayton for Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission: "It's hard to see how an attorney who's spent his career helping Wall Street beat the rap will keep President-elect Trump's promise to stop big banks and hedge funds from 'getting away with murder.' I look forward to hearing h… Continue Reading
December 22, 2016
Banking Committee Democrats Press Wells Fargo Board for More Answers on Phony Accounts Scandal
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Democrats on the U.S. Senate Banking Committee today called on Wells Fargo's board of directors to respond to questions that the bank's management has failed to answer following a scandal over its fraudulent sales practices. In the letter, the Senators asked Wells Fargo's board for details about its ongoing investigation of the fraud, the timeline of when the board learned about the bank's illegal practices, actions the board took to address the problem, and reasons why it di… Continue Reading
December 21, 2016
Brown Asks Trump's Treasury Nominee to Explain Views on Banking, Housing Rules
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee - today asked Steven Mnuchin, President-elect Donald Trump's choice for Treasury Secretary, to answer questions about his views and record related to key Wall Street rules and housing issues. In a letter to Mnuchin, Brown asked the nominee to provide information about how his experience as a hedge fund executive, former Goldman Sachs partner, and leader of a financial i… Continue Reading
