Minority Press Releases
ICYMI: Brown Speaks to Consumer Federation of America on Attempts to Undercut CFPB Authority.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In Case You Missed It: Senator Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senator Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, spoke at the Consumer Federation of America’s 57th Annual Consumer Assembly. In his address, Brown spoke about the need to protect the Consumer Financial Protect Bureau (CFPB) from Republican attempts to undercut its authority. Brown also highlighted an amicus brief he filed with Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA43), Ranking member of the House Financi… Continue Reading
May 16, 2023
Brown Holds Failed Bank Executives Accountable for Mismanagement
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Examining the Failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: In the days after the run on Silicon Valley Bank, when it was closed by the California banking regulators and taken over by the FDIC, many in Washin… Continue Reading
May 15, 2023
Brown, Waters Lead 144 Current and Former Members on Amicus Brief Supporting CFPB
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, and Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, led 144 current and former Members of Congress, including Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and 100 other current and former Members of the House of Representatives, as well as Democratic Leader Chuck Schu… Continue Reading
May 12, 2023
Brown Applauds Federal Reserve Nominees
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, released the following statement after President Biden announced The Honorable Philip Jefferson for Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve, Dr. Adriana Kugler for Governor of the Federal Reserve, and the renomination of The Honorable Lisa D. Cook for Governor of the Federal Reserve: “These historic nominees have built their careers by putting workers and… Continue Reading
May 11, 2023
Brown Advances CEA, HUD, and Treasury Nominees
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held an executive session to vote on the nominations of: Dr. Jared Bernstein, of Virginia, to be Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, Executive Office of the President; Dr. Ron Borzekowski, of Maryland, to be Director of Financial Research, Department of the Treasury; Mr. Solomon Jeffrey Greene, of the District of Columbia, to b… Continue Reading
May 11, 2023
Brown: Cannabis Banking must Help Legal Small Businesses and Empower Workers
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Examining Cannabis Banking Challenges of Small Businesses and Workers.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Thank you to Senators Merkley and Daines for being here to testify and welcome to our other witnesses. And thank you to Ranking Member Scott fo… Continue Reading
May 9, 2023
Bipartisan Support Grows for Brown’s FEND Off Fentanyl Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. – To mark National Fentanyl Awareness Day, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and U.S. Senator Tim Scott (R-SC), the committee’s ranking member, highlight the rapidly growing support for the Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act. Chairman Jack Reed (D-RI) and Ranking Member Roger Wicker (R-MS) of the Senate Committee on Armed Services were original cosponsors of t… Continue Reading
May 4, 2023
Brown Presses Banks on Voice Authentication Services
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, sent letters to six large banks that offer voice authentication services, outlining concerns that artificial intelligence (AI) generated voice clips can allow fraudulent actors to break into customers’ accounts. “Despite these breaches, financial institutions continue to market voice authentication as safe and reliable without identifyin… Continue Reading
May 4, 2023
Brown: Executives Should Face Real Consequences For Their Actions
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Holding Executives Accountable After Recent Bank Failures.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Most Americans who put their money in a bank should trust that it will be safe. They shouldn’t have to give it a second thought. That money isn̵… Continue Reading
May 3, 2023
Brown Applauds SEC’s Final Buyback Reporting Rule
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, issued the following statement after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted new rules enhancing stock buyback disclosures. “Americans need to know that instead of raising wages, scaling up production, and investing in research and development, corporate executives spend billions on buybacks that enrich themselves and Wall Street. … Continue Reading
May 2, 2023
Brown Raises Concerns About Tellus’s Handling of Customers’ Money
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, wrote a letter to Martin Gruenberg, Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), outlining concerns with Tellus, a nonbank “fintech” company that advertises high-interest savings accounts, despite not being insured by the FDIC. In his letter, Brown urged that the FDIC review Tellus’ business practices to ensure that cust… Continue Reading
May 2, 2023
Brown: Flooding is Devastating Families, Homes, Businesses, and Communities
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program: Improving Community Resilience.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: This hearing is a continuation of our efforts to enact a long-term reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program. T… Continue Reading
May 1, 2023
Brown Statement on First Republic
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) issued the following statement regarding the failure of First Republic Bank. “First Republic Bank’s risky behavior, unique business model, and management failures led to significant problems, and it’s clear we need stronger guardrails in place,” said Brown. “We must make large banks more resilient against failure so that we protect financial stability and ensure competition in the long run.… Continue Reading
April 28, 2023
Brown Statement on Fed and FDIC Reviews
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) issued the following statement after the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) released reports on the Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank Failures: “These reports confirm how poorly managed, overconcentrated, and over-reliant on particular industries both of these banks were. It is also clear that supervision fell short here. We must address gaps in the Fed and FDIC’s supervi… Continue Reading
April 28, 2023
Brown, Gallego Introduce Bill to Plant Trees, Reduce Urban Heat
In recognition of Arbor Day, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) introduced the Excess Urban Heat Mitigation Act, legislation to create a grant program through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that would provide funding to local governments and nonprofit organizations for heat mitigation efforts. “As climate change worsens, excess heat and rising surface temperatures are putting… Continue Reading
April 27, 2023
Brown Holds Credit Report CEOs Accountable For Errors, Data Breaches
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Oversight of the Credit Reporting Agencies.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: The three witnesses today determine the financial futures of every American. Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion are the biggest credit reporting agencies. You have tremen… Continue Reading
April 26, 2023
Brown Chairs Hearing on Bipartisan Bills to Address Housing Crisis
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Building Consensus to Address Housing Challenges.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: In February we heard from witnesses about the housing challenges that families and their communities face. We heard that more than two-thirds of families aren&… Continue Reading
April 25, 2023
Banking Committee Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Address the Fentanyl Crisis
The leaders of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs today introduced the bipartisan Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act, a sanctions and anti-money laundering bill aimed at combatting the country’s fentanyl crisis by targeting the illicit fentanyl supply chain, from the chemical suppliers in China to the cartels that traffic the drugs in from Mexico. By strengthening current law and directing the Treasury Department to target, sancti… Continue Reading
April 21, 2023
Brown Applauds New SIFI Guidance Proposal to Strengthen Financial Stability
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, released the following statement regarding new proposed guidance from the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) on Systemically Important Financial Institutions (SIFI). “As too many families in Ohio and across the country experienced in 2007-2008, when a financial crisis hits, working families are hit first and the hardest,” sai… Continue Reading
April 20, 2023
Brown Urges Review Of Failed Banks' Borrowing From FHLBanks
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, sent a letter to Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Sandra Thompson about Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLBank) System advances made to Silvergate, Silicon Valley Bank, and Signature Bank leading up to the banks’ failures. The letter requests that FHFA include an analysis of the events around these bank failures in the agen… Continue Reading