Majority Press Releases

July 29, 2019

Brown, Warren Demand Action Following "Damning' Blankenstein IG 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 - and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) - Ranking Member of the Banking Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection - are demanding action from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and the CFPB Inspector General following what the Senators call ‘damning’ findings from an in… Continue Reading


July 23, 2019

Brown Opening Statement at Hearing on Cannabis Banking

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 ‘Challenges for Cannabis and Banking: Outside Perspectives’.Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Thank you Chairman Crapo for holding this hearing, and welcome to our witnesses. Over the past several years, voters and legislatures in nearly every state have, to some… Continue Reading


July 16, 2019

Brown Opening Statement at Facebook 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 on Facebook’s Digital Currency.Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Facebook is dangerous.Now, Facebook might not intend to be dangerous - but they certainly don’t respect the power of the technologies they are playing with. Like a toddler who has gotten his hands on a book … Continue Reading


July 1, 2019

Senators Demand Answers from HUD for Hiring Eric Blankenstein

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 Sens. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), are demanding answers on HUD’s hiring practices following press reports that disgraced former CFPB political appointee Eric Blankenstein was hired as Senior Counsel of HUD’s Office of General Counsel, just one month afte… Continue Reading


June 27, 2019

Brown Opening Statement at Banking Committee Hearing on the Reauthorization of the Export Import Bank

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 and Reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank of the United States”. Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for calling this important hearing to discuss the future of the Export-Import Bank. I also want to thank the Chairman fo… Continue Reading


June 26, 2019

Senators Demand HUD Maintain Homeownership Opportunities For Dreamers

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Bob Menendez (D-NJ), ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee’s Housing Subcommittee, Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) are demanding the Department of Housing and Urban Affairs (HUD) clarify that DACA recipients remain eligible for Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured loans, which has been a longstanding practice. This … Continue Reading


June 25, 2019

Brown and Rubio Re-introduce Legislation To Protect Small Business From Predatory Lenders

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), Chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship re-introduced legislation to protect small businesses from fly-by-night predatory lenders. “When we let financial predators harm hardworking Americans through scams like confessions of judgment, we undermine the dignity of work,” said Brown. … Continue Reading


June 25, 2019

Brown Opening Statement at Hearing on Fannie, Freddie SIFI Designation

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 “Should Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac be Designated as Systemically Important Financial Institutions?”. Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding this hearing and thank you to our witnesses for being here today. Home is at the center o… Continue Reading


June 24, 2019

Brown to NCUA: Unacceptable To Extend Delay On Capital Rules

 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 the National Credit Union Administration’s (NCUA) decision to delay the implementation of its risk-based capital rule that protects the credit union system and its members. The NCUA Board approved a proposal to extend the effective date of its risk-based capital rule to January 1, 2022, the second time it has delayed … Continue Reading


June 24, 2019

Brown Statement on Wall Street Stress Test Results

  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 the Federal Reserve’s Dodd Frank Act Stress Test (DFAST) results. Stress tests are assessments performed by the Federal Reserve to ensure banks are strong enough to withstand a downturn in the economy without setting off another financial crisis.   “Megabank CEOs aren’t playing T-ball, where everyone gets a… Continue Reading


June 18, 2019

BROWN: Financial Watchdogs Must Scrutinize Facebook Cryptocurrency Closely

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 Facebook unveiling details of its cryptocurrency Libra. This new cryptocurrency will give Facebook competitive advantages with regard to collecting data about financial transactions, as well as control over fees and functionality. “Facebook is already too big and too powerful, and it has used that power to exploit users… Continue Reading


June 18, 2019

Brown Opening Statement at TRIA Reauthorization 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 entitled “The Reauthorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act”.  Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Thank you Senator Crapo for holding the Committee’s first hearing on the reauthorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program. While the Program expires at the end of … Continue Reading


June 14, 2019

Senators Demand HUD Continue To Protect Housing Rights For Transgender Individuals

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sens. Patty Murray (D-WA) - ranking member of the Senate HELP Committee, Sherrod Brown (D-OH) - ranking member of the U.S. Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ) along with 8 senators are demanding that the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rescind its proposal that would weaken discrimination protections in HUD-funded emergency and temporary homeless shelters based on sex, includin… Continue Reading


June 13, 2019

Senators to CFPB: Data Critical To Ensuring Housing Access For All Americans

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 18 Senators are demanding the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rescind its proposal to further reduce reporting under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA).  In opposition to the proposal, the senators wrote, “We are extremely concerned that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has once again put the interests the financial indu… Continue Reading


June 11, 2019

Brown Opening Statement at Data Privacy 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 entitled “Data Brokers and the Impact on Financial Data Privacy, Credit, Insurance, Employment and Housing”.  Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow:  I appreciate Chairman Crapo continuing these important, bipartisan efforts to protect Americans’ sensitive personal information.… Continue Reading


June 7, 2019

Brown To SEC: Put Investors First

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 the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) final rule and interpretations issued this week on the standards of conduct for investment advisers and broker-dealers. This rule weakens investor protection and allows Wall Street to continue gaming the system at the expense of Americans saving and investing for their futu… Continue Reading


June 6, 2019

In Wake of Crackdown on Annoying Robocalls, Menendez, Brown Lead Colleagues in Calling on Trump Administration to Protect Consumers from Abusive Debt Collection Tactics

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Following passage of legislation cracking down on annoying and unwanted robocalls, U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, today led a group of 24 colleagues in calling on Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Kathy Kraninger to reverse a proposed rule that would, for the first time, allow debt collection companies to send unlimited texts and emails to consumers. Just last year, ofte… Continue Reading


June 6, 2019

Brown, Van Hollen Senate Democrats Urge Fed Investigate Deutsche Bank’s Relationship with Trump and Kushner

WASHINGTON - Today U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, led a letter with Democrats on the Committee asking the Federal Reserve to investigate Deutsche Bank’s relationship with President Trump and Jared Kushner, following reports that Bank officials ignored suspicious activities on accounts associated with the two men. Senators Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Catherine C… Continue Reading


June 4, 2019

Brown Opening Statement at Banking Committee Hearing on Confronting Threats From China

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 “Confronting Threats From China: Assessing Controls on Technology and Investment, and Measures to Combat Opioid Trafficking”.  Sen. Brown’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, follow: Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for calling this important hearing to assess key questions before the committee… Continue Reading


May 23, 2019

ICYMI: Brown Presses Treasury To Investigate Deutsche Bank

 In case you missed it, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow discussed with Senate Banking Committee ranking member Sherrod Brown his demands for more information from Deutsche Bank following the New York Times story exposing that the bank’s anti-money laundering specialists had repeatedly recommended the filing of suspicious activity reports (SARs) on transactions by Trump entities, including the Trump Foundation, and by Kushner companies -- including transactions with overseas actors.   ·       … Continue Reading

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