Congressman
Henry E. Brown, Jr.

Brown, House Republicans Demand Open Books at Fannie & Freddie

Posted by: Brown Staff (October 16, 2008, 02:49 PM)

Congressman Brown and 33 House Republicans sent the following letter to the regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac asking that the books of the two failed mortgage giants be opened up for the American public to examine.

Posted in Economy | View Full Posting

Fannie & Freddie: Examining the Real Root of the Economic Debacle

Posted by: Henry E. Brown (October 15, 2008, 06:00 PM)

As our country faces historic economic challenge, I believe it is essential that the Democratic Congress closely examine the facts of history and not ignore the role of the largest players at the center of the economic debacle: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Republican’s have been scrutinizing these mortgage giants since 2004, when they called hearings after reports of fraudulent accounting activities at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  These reports showed that Fannie was reporting false earnings in a way that triggered extra bonuses to company executives and also brought to light significant problems with the portfolios maintained by both Fannie and Freddie – especially the fact that they held trillions of dollars in risky mortgage backed securities.

During the House Financial Services Committee hearings, Committee Republicans made their initial call for reform and increased oversight of Fannie and Freddie, asked the tough questions and successfully passed H.R. 1461, the Federal Housing Finance Reform Act of 2005. All the while, Committee Democrats claimed there was “no crisis”, called the regulator “incompetent” and were viscerally angry at the idea that problems could be occurring at Fannie and Freddie.

I strongly supported H.R 1461, and had its consideration not been blocked by liberal Democrats in the Senate, it would have restructured both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, created massive oversight and inevitably prevented Fannie and Freddie’s $1 trillion buying binge of risky subprime and mortgage backed securities between 2005 and 2007. 

From 1990 to 2005, Fannie and Freddie grew more than 944% to $1.64 trillion, while their liabilities grew by 980% to $1.51 trillion. The two gambled with taxpayer dollars and lost. Between 1998 and 2008, they spent nearly $175 million combined lobbying Congress, and between 2000 and 2008, Fannie and Freddie employees contributed nearly $15 million to the campaign coffers of congressional candidates and party committees.

Republicans have been trying for years to reform the two mortgage giants, but because of liberal Democrats Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were able to continue with their unethical policies and dangerous predatory lending that has laid the foundation for the economic troubles that is having an impact on every single taxpayer in America.

In yet another effort to reform Fannie and Freddie, I, along with many of my Republican colleagues will be sending a letter urging the current regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to bring increased transparency to their past financial dealings and decision making. I believe that providing open access to the documents and financial paperwork of these two massive organizations would go far towards helping Congress and the nation not only understand what failed, but also make the necessary changes to prevent us from going down this road again.

My Republican colleagues and I continue to demand a bipartisan committee hearing to expose the root of the issue and create a necessary and complete review of Fannie Mac and Freddie Mac. In order to bring the key facts to the American people, the hearing must include testimony from former executive Frank Raines and other former Fannie and Freddie executives.  There have been serious problems with Fannie and Freddie since 2004, and these problems, having grown, are some of the key causes of our current economic crisis.

Posted in Economy | View Full Posting

Fostering New Technology to Improve Rail Safety

Posted by: Brown Staff (October 06, 2008, 12:47 PM)

An oped in today's LA Daily News discusses the need to improve safety at the thousands of rail-highway grade crossings across the country.  In the recently passed Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, Congressman Brown worked to get legislative language that would make developing and deploying new technology warning systems at these grade crossings a priority.  Specifically, Brown's language will get DOT focused on working with the private sector to develop new grade crossing safety technologies, such as systems that can warn a train miles away that a car is stuck on the tracks, allowing it time to stop before the crossing.  Brown also worked to add additional language that will give states and technology companies the legal protection necessary to install these systems at crossings, instead of simply keeping them in the lab. 

Read LA Daily News OPED: Grade-crossing deaths are true rail problem

Language from Rail Safety Improvement Act:

(a) Amendment- Subchapter II of chapter 201, as amended by section 204 of this division, is further amended by adding at the end the following:

`Sec. 20161. Fostering introduction of new technology to improve safety at highway-rail grade crossings

`(a) Findings-

`(1) Collisions between highway users and trains at highway-rail grade crossings continue to cause an unacceptable loss of life, serious personal injury, and property damage.

`(2) While elimination of at-grade crossings through consolidation of crossings and grade separations offers the greatest long-term promise for optimizing the safety and efficiency of the two modes of transportation, over 140,000 public grade crossings remain on the general rail system--approximately one for each route mile on the general rail system.

`(3) Conventional highway traffic control devices such as flashing lights and gates are often effective in warning motorists of a train's approach to an equipped crossing.

`(4) Since enactment of the Highway Safety Act of 1973, over $4,200,000,000 of Federal funding has been invested in safety improvements at highway-rail grade crossings, yet a majority of public highway-rail grade crossings are not yet equipped with active warning systems.

`(5) The emergence of new technologies presents opportunities for more effective and affordable warnings and safer passage of highway users and trains at remaining highway-rail grade crossings.

`(6) Implementation of new crossing safety technology will require extensive cooperation between highway authorities and railroad carriers.

`(7) Federal Railroad Administration regulations establishing performance standards for processor-based signal and train control systems provide a suitable framework for qualification of new or novel technology at highway-rail grade crossings, and the Federal Highway Administration's Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices provides an appropriate means of determining highway user interface with such new technology.

`(b) Policy- It is the policy of the United States to encourage the development of new technology that can prevent loss of life and injuries at highway-rail grade crossings. The Secretary of Transportation is designated to carry out this policy in consultation with States and necessary public and private entities.

`(c) Submission of New Technology Proposals- Railroad carriers and railroad suppliers may submit for review and approval to the Secretary such new technology designed to improve safety at highway-rail grade crossings. The Secretary shall approve by order the new technology designed to improve safety at highway-rail grade crossings in accordance with Federal Railroad Administration standards for the development and use of processor-based signal and train control systems and shall consider the effects on safety of highway-user interface with the new technology.

`(d) Effect of Secretarial Approval- If the Secretary approves by order new technology to provide warning to highway users at a highway-rail grade crossing and such technology is installed at a highway-rail grade crossing in accordance with the conditions of the approval, this determination preempts any State statute or regulation concerning the adequacy of the technology in providing warning at the crossing.'.

(b) Conforming Amendment- The chapter analysis for chapter 201, as amended by section 204 of this division, is further amended by inserting after the item relating to section 20160, the following:

`20161. Fostering introduction of new technology to improve safety at highway-rail grade crossings.'.

Posted in Transportation | View Full Posting

Democrats in their own words covering up the Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac scam

Posted by: Brown Staff (October 06, 2008, 10:39 AM)

Some shocking video from 2004 where Democratic members of the Financial Services Committee defend the misdeeds of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac while attacking the government regulator who uncovered the common practices of inflating earnings and papering over risky investments at the two companies:

Posted in Economy | View Full Posting