Majority Press Releases
Brown: Together With Chair Gensler, We Can Make Our Markets Work for Everyone
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 “Oversight of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.”Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow:Welcome, Chair Gensler.Five months ago today, the Senate confirmed you as Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. I know you have already gotten to work for the American people, and you had your wo… Continue Reading
September 13, 2021
Brown Statement on Nomination of Reta Jo Lewis for Export-import Bank President and Chair
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 the Biden Administration announced the nomination of Reta Jo Lewis to be President and Chair of the Export-Import Bank (EXIM). If confirmed, Lewis would be the first Black woman to lead EXIM. “I want to applaud President Biden for nominating such a well-qualified woman to lead EXIM. EXIM helps create hundreds of thousands of good-paying manufactur… Continue Reading
September 10, 2021
Brown Statement On CFPB And OCC’s $250 Million Fines Against Wells Fargo
Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, released the following statement after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced new fines on Wells Fargo:“Wells Fargo has yet again demonstrated it is too large to manage, and it can’t be trusted to do right by its customers or its workers.”###… Continue Reading
September 7, 2021
Brown Applauds New Equitable Housing Plans for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - issued the following statement following the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) announcementthat it will now require Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) to prepare and implement Equitable Housing Finance Plans to remove barriers to housing access for underserved borrowers and renters, including households of color. FHFA also published a request for information seeking c… Continue Reading
September 1, 2021
Brown Commends CFPB’s Proposed Rule to Improve Small Business Lending Data
Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - issued the following statement regarding the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) proposed rule to require banks to collect more data on small business lending.“Small businesses drive growth in communities across our country, but too often they face barriers blocking access to credit and loans. This proposed rule is an important step in addressing longstanding gaps in small … Continue Reading
September 1, 2021
Brown Applauds White House Efforts to Address Housing Supply
Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - applauded the White House’s planned changes to make it easier to produce affordable housing.“Housing has long been too expensive and too hard to find for many families. Building more affordable homes - and keeping the homes we have in the hands of homeowners, not investors - is key to bringing down housing costs, including for communities that have been denied access to housing for t… Continue Reading
August 27, 2021
Brown Blasts Supreme Court for Ruling Against CDC Eviction Moratorium
Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, released the following statement after the Supreme Court ruled against the CDC’s eviction moratorium.“The Supreme Court ruled against public safety and against struggling families trying to weather this ongoing crisis,” said Brown. “This is a shameful decision, especially when the troubling rise of the Delta variant means families need protection now more than ever. It is vital that state and… Continue Reading
August 18, 2021
Brown Applauds New Affordable Housing Goals Proposal for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - issued the following statement on the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) announcement of their proposed rule establishing new affordable housing goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the government-sponsored enterprises, or GSEs). The proposed rule includes a new benchmark to assess the GSEs’ activity serving low- and moderate-income homeowners in areas with significant popul… Continue Reading
August 10, 2021
Senate Passes Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill With Historic Brown Provisions to Invest in Ohio Communities & Create Good-Paying American Jobs
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today announced that the Senate passed a bipartisan infrastructure bill, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, with several key provisions he secured for Ohio communities. As the Chairman of a key committee on infrastructure legislation, Brown fought for Ohio and delivered, with big investments now on the way to the state for good-paying jobs to build and upgrade critical infrastructure like bridges, broadband, waterways, and public transit—all without rai… Continue Reading
August 9, 2021
Brown to Senate Colleagues: Housing Is Infrastructure
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs today took to the Senate floor to urge his colleagues to support the robust investments in housing that are included in this week's budget resolution. Brown specifically pushed for investments in affordable housing, underserved urban, rural, and tribal communities, and to make homeownership more accessible for workers and their families. Video of the speech can be found here and Brown’s … Continue Reading
August 9, 2021
Brown Applauds Biden Administration for Renominating Todd Harper
Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, released the following statement applauding the Biden Administration for renominating Chair Todd Harper to the Board of Directors of the National Credit Union Association (NCUA).“Todd Harper has worked on a bipartisan basis for stronger consumer protections and capital requirements so credit unions can continue lending to and investing in their communities - in both good times and bad. I look… Continue Reading
August 6, 2021
Brown Applauds SEC for Approving New Diversity Standards
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 the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved Nasdaq’s proposed rule related to board diversity and disclosure:“Corporate America must do more to increase diversity in the boardroom,” said Brown. “I applaud the SEC and Nasdaq for recognizing the benefits to companies and shareholders of a more inclusive and equitable economy.” ###… Continue Reading
August 5, 2021
Brown: These HUD Nominees Stand Ready to Address Our Nation’s Housing Crisis
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 nominations hearing for Julia Gordon, David Uejio, and Solomon Greene to be Assistant Secretaries of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow:Today, we will consider three nominations for critical roles at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.Julia Gordon has been nominated t… Continue Reading
August 4, 2021
Brown Blasts Republican Attack on Qualified HUD Nominees
Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, released the following statement regarding Ranking Member Toomey’s letter to President Biden urging him to withdraw Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) nominees: Ms. Julia Gordon nominee, to be Assistant Secretary of HUD; and Mr. Solomon J. Greene, to be Assistant Secretary of HUD.“Senator Toomey is asking the president to withdraw nominees over retweets. This is political theat… Continue Reading
August 3, 2021
Senator Reverend Warnock Chairs First Senate Banking Subcommittee Hearing, Underscores Prevalence of Consumer Scams in the Pandemic Recovery Economy
Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA), chair of the U.S. Senate Banking Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection, held a hearing to address the rising threat of financial fraud and scams during the pandemic and the economic threat these practices pose to a full recovery. The Senate Banking Subcommittee hearing, entitled “Protecting Consumers from Financial Fraud and Scams in the Pandemic Recovery Economy”, is the first hearing that Senator Warnock has chaired … Continue Reading
August 3, 2021
Brown Applauds Biden Administration for New Actions on the Eviction Moratorium Amid Troubling Rise in COVID-19 Cases
Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, issued the following statement regarding the Biden Administration’s new action to limit evictions.“I applaud the Administration for this effort to protect renters from the public health crisis. The troubling rise of the Delta variant means families need protection now more than ever,” said Brown. “While the order is in place, I again urge all state and local grantees to quickly provide rental… Continue Reading
August 3, 2021
Brown: Financial Watchdogs Must Ensure Banks and Credit Unions Serve Working Families and Their Communities
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 “Oversight of Financial Regulators: Does our Financial System Work for Everyone?”Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow:Before we begin, I want to ask all of my colleagues to work with their governors and local officials to get the eviction prevention assistance out faster - I spoke to Governor DeWine a… Continue Reading
July 29, 2021
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Introduces Legislation to Examine History of Racially Restrictive Covenants
Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) introduced legislation to examine the history of racially restrictive covenants—which were used as tools of discrimination to keep Black families and households of color from moving into certain neighborhoods—so we can better understand the scope of these covenants.Sen. Smith’s Mapping Housing Discrimination Act is inspired by work being done at the University of Minnesota to map racially restrictive covenants, which will help to study the connection betw… Continue Reading
July 29, 2021
Brown: Passing 36% Rate Cap Bill Would Protect Americans From Debt Traps
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 “Protecting Americans from Debt Traps by Extending the Military's 36% Interest Rate Cap to Everyone.”Yesterday, Chairman Brown joined Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), several members of the Committee, and a number of other Senate Democrats in reintroducing the Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act, legisla… Continue Reading
July 28, 2021
U.S. Senators Seek to Cap Consumer Loans at 36%
In an effort to put a stop to abusive and predatory lending practices that target vulnerable consumers, U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), today led the reintroduction of legislation that would extend the protections of the Military Lending Act (MLA), which caps the annual percentage rate (APR) on consumer loans at 36 percent, to cover veterans and other consumers.In 2006, Congress passed the MLA to rein in predatory payday len… Continue Reading
