Financial Services

 

Since joining the Financial Services Committee in 2001, Congresswoman Capito has gained experience and developed expertise in all areas affecting our financial system.  In the wake of the financial collapse of 2008, Congresswoman Capito has played a central role integrating sound policy into the U.S. financial system.  She has been adamantly opposed to the $700 billion banking bailout (TARP), raising concerns over the speed with which it was considered, the size, and its cost to West Virginia taxpayers. 

The collapse of Wall Street and the government bailouts that followed exposed weaknesses in our U.S. financial regulatory structure.  As a member of the Committee, Capito is responsible for overseeing issues pertaining to the economy, banking system, housing, and insurance.  She believes in modernizing our financial system by implementing smart, effective regulation that protects small businesses, maintains U.S. competitiveness, and promotes a robust private market.

Appointed to serve on the House-Senate conference committee responsible for one of the most comprehensive pieces of legislation regulating the financial industry, she sponsored amendments to end “too big to fail” and protect American taxpayers from future bailouts.  She has also introduced as well as supported legislation to bring increased transparency and accountability to the newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).  The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act gave the CFPB broad authority to write rules, supervise compliance, and enforce all consumer protection laws.  

As Chairman of the Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Subcommittee, the Congresswoman is in a position to ensure consumers continue to have access to credit and see to it that financial decisions continue to be made in one’s house and not in a bureaucracy in Washington.  As chair of the Subcommittee with jurisdiction over the depository institutions, and deposit insurance, she has worked hard with her colleagues to strike the appropriate regulatory balance. 

Finally, as a senior member of the Financial Services Committee, the Congresswoman believes a strong private mortgage market can return by creating a competitive environment, which means reducing government’s footprint in the housing industry.  Capito has sponsored legislation to reform government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) and to protect taxpayers from future bailouts to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.