Majority Press Releases
Brown Urges Regulators to Put Workers, Customers First in Considering Capital One-Discover Merger
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, urged federal banking regulators to thoroughly consider all aspects of the proposed merger between Capital One and Discover and ensure that this proposed transaction is in the best interests of the families, households, and businesses who deserve a fair financial system. In a letter to Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr and Acting Comptroller Michael… Continue Reading
July 25, 2024
Brown: We Cannot Allow U.S. Innovations and Investments To Be Used Against Us
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Advancing National Security through Export Controls, Investment Security, and the Defense Production.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery follow: We face an uncertain world with many geopolitical challenges - from Russia’s continued brutal invasion of Ukraine, to ongoing conflict… Continue Reading
July 19, 2024
Brown Introduces Bill to Create Antitrust Review Process & Crack Down on Corporate Investors in The Housing Market
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, introduced legislation to increase competition in the housing market by requiring corporations and private equity firms that buy up large numbers of houses and apartments to report those transactions to antitrust enforcers. The Housing Acquisitions Review and Transparency (HART) Act would make it easier to stop anticompetitive transactions that could increase housing costs, decrea… Continue Reading
July 12, 2024
Bipartisan Brown-Braun Bill to Support Veteran Homebuyers Passes Senate
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Senator Mike Braun (R-IN), announced Senate passage of their legislation to help inform veteran homebuyers of their eligibility for the VA Home Loan Program, which helps more veterans achieve the dream of homeownership. “This is an important step toward making the dream of homeownership a reality for more military families and veterans. Ohioans who have served o… Continue Reading
July 11, 2024
Brown: These Nominees Will Play An Important Role In The Success and Stability of Our Financial System
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered the following opening statement at today’s nominations hearing for the Honorable Christy Goldsmith Romero, of Virginia, to be Chairperson and Member of the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; The Honorable Caroline A. Crenshaw, of the District of Columbia, to be a Member of the Securities and Exchange Commission; The Honorabl… Continue Reading
July 9, 2024
Brown to Powell: Keeping Rates Too High Threatens Workers’ Paychecks
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “The Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery follow: Welcome Chair Powell. Ohioans know and Americans know that our economy fundamentally is not a fair playing field. Instead, we have a David and Goliath economy, where the largest c… Continue Reading
July 3, 2024
Brown Demands Transparency from Uber and Lyft on Surge Pricing
Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, called for transparency from Uber and Lyft on its use of surge pricing to set fares. In a letter to the CEOs of Uber and Lyft, Brown expressed concern that frequent and opaque price changes and diminishing competition are making ride-hailing services less affordable, and that pricing algorithms enable corporations to charge higher prices in circumstances where consumers have the gre… Continue Reading
July 1, 2024
Brown, Wyden, Baldwin, Fetterman Urge Synapse’s Owners and Partners to Immediately Make Customers’ Deposits Available
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, along with Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and John Fetterman (D-PA) are urging Synapse’s owners and bank and fintech partners to restore customers’ access to their money. Since mid-May, customers who entrusted their money to its fintech and bank partners have been unable to access their money. In a letter to Synapse’s partners and owners, Brown a… Continue Reading
June 17, 2024
Brown Pushes Bank Regulators to Protect Consumers and Communities When Reviewing Mergers
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, urged the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to ensure their updated bank merger policies will adequately scrutinize mergers’ effects on consumers and communities. “Last year’s bank failures coupled with an increasing trend towards concentration in the banking industry demonstrate the immediate need for t… Continue Reading
June 13, 2024
Brown Statement on Christy Goldsmith Romero Nomination to Chair the FDIC
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, congratulated Christy Goldsmith Romero on her nomination to be Chair of the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and issued the following statement: “Christy Goldsmith Romero, who has been unanimously confirmed by the Senate twice, would bring to the FDIC decades of financial services experience, including valuable experience as … Continue Reading
June 12, 2024
Brown: The CFPB Stands Up for Consumers
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Semi-Annual Report to Congress.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery follow: Last month, we defeated the latest in a long, long line of attacks on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by the corporate interests that want the agency of… Continue Reading
June 11, 2024
CFPB Heeds Brown Call to Eliminate Medical Debt from Consumers’ Credit Reports
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 on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s new proposal to eliminate medical debt from consumer credit reports: “Medical debt can happen to anyone, at any time, and does not reflect creditworthiness. No one should be forced to pay higher rates for a mortgage or a car loan or deal with aggressive debt collectors, just because th… Continue Reading
May 22, 2024
Brown Presses DoorDash on High-Cost Loans to Small Businesses
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, raised concerns about DoorDash advertising merchant cash advance (MCA) products to small businesses on its platform. “MCAs are often high cost: merchants have paid the equivalent of interest rates over 800 percent or even higher in connection with MCAs,” wrote Brown. “The high cost of many MCAs—especially when combined with renewing or stacking advances—creates a… Continue Reading
May 20, 2024
Brown Calls for New Leadership at the FDIC
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, issued the following statement calling for new leadership at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): “After chairing last week’s hearing, reviewing the independent report, and receiving further outreach from FDIC employees to the Banking and Housing Committee, I am left with one conclusion: there must be fundamental changes at the FDIC. Those changes be… Continue Reading
May 16, 2024
Brown Reacts to Supreme Court Decision to Uphold the CFPB
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs released the following statement on the United States’ Supreme Court decision in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Community Financial Services Association of America, to uphold the funding structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). “Wall Street tried to use the courts to kill the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and they failed. Powerful corpo… Continue Reading
May 16, 2024
Brown Holds Oversight Hearing with Financial Regulators
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Oversight of U.S. Financial Regulators: Accountability and Financial Stability.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery follow: Today we’ll hear testimony from three key financial regulators whose agencies are responsible for protecting our banking system and making sure it serves al… Continue Reading
May 14, 2024
Brown: Fed’s Updated Stock Trading Rules Fall Short
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 on the Federal Reserve’s update to trading rules for members of the Federal Reserve Board and governors. “Public officials, whether at the Fed or in Congress, must serve the American people - not their own stock portfolios. The Board’s latest update to its trading rules still fails to establish the clear penalties needed for Fed… Continue Reading
May 9, 2024
Brown Demands Answers on Amazon and Walmart’s Use of So-Called “Dynamic Pricing”
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, raised concerns about corporations unfairly hiking prices by exploiting customer data and using pricing algorithms. In letters to the CEOs of Amazon and Walmart, Senator Brown made clear that “dynamic pricing” often leads to higher prices for consumers. He pressed for answers on how the companies are using these new technologies to set prices. “Prices are still t… Continue Reading
May 9, 2024
Brown: Corporate Junk Fees Raise Costs and Suppress Competition
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing entitled, “Consumer Protection: Examining Fees in Financial Services and Rental Housing.” Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery follow: Costs are far too high for Americans. And corporations are finding more and more ways to raise those costs, to boost their own profits. We’ve talked about ho… Continue Reading
May 7, 2024
Brown Statement on Independent FDIC Report
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, released the following statement regarding the independent review of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (FDIC) workplace culture. “The FDIC needs to be fixed. The women and men who work there deserve better,” said Brown. “Chair Gruenberg must accept responsibility and must immediately work to make fundamental changes to the agency and its culture.” ###… Continue Reading
