Lamborn Supports Fiscally Responsible Solution to Housing Problems
Washington, Jul 23, 2008 -
Today, Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO-05) voted against a hastily negotiated bill that would introduce the most sweeping changes to housing law in a generation. H.R. 3221, the Housing and Economic Recovery Act, introduces a massive increase in the size and scope of the federal government.
“This is an issue of fiscal responsibility. I reject a super-sized federal bailout. This country does not need a massive increase in the size and scope of the federal government. In addition, the Joint Committee on Taxation calculates a net tax increase of $3.8 billion over six years. This bill would authorize more than $300 billion mortgage refinancing programs and significantly increase the reach of the federal government. In addition, Members of the GOP were given less than 24 hours to read through a 694-page bill. We had no opportunity to amend the legislation. There was no committee hearing and debate was limited to two hours.” – Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO-05)
Key elements of the legislation:
- More than $300 billion mortgage refinancing
- Unlimited Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac borrowing authority from the U.S. Treasury
- New tax to fund left-leaning housing and political advocacy organizations
- A host of constitutionally-questionable provisions that put the taxpayer on the financial hook
- Significant expansion of federal government into the private sphere
The Congressman supports a fiscally responsible approach to the problem. He supports HR 6521, the Federal Housing Finance Regulatory Reform Act of 2008. If passed, H.R. 6521 would:
- Establish direct, hard limits on the Treasury's authority to lend to and buy shares from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
- Ban all Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac political lobbying for as long as they receive tax dollars
- Ensure that any infusion of taxpayer cash occurs at the least-risky level
- Allow a new regulator control not only over executive compensation at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but also selection of board members
- Create new competitive, private housing finance entities by breaking up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Many groups, including the American Conservative Union, reject H.R. 3221 and released the following statement regarding Congressman Lamborn's vote:
“It is no wonder that Americans across the country are disgusted with Congress. This bill gives Washington bureaucrats a $25 billion blank check to back up and even use their money to buy stock in supposedly private corporations whose executives get paid up to $20 million per year. The bill then puts a tax on these supposedly weak corporations to create a slush fund for left wing activist groups, like ACORN, which has been convicted of election fraud. It gives speculators and scam artists the ability to profit from their mistakes. In voting against this bill, Congressman Lamborn has sided with the American taxpayer and against Washington special interests.” --Larry Hart, ACU Director of Government Relations
*** As of press time, the following groups are also rejecting HR 3221: Americans for Tax Reform, the Club for Growth, the National Taxpayers Union, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste and Freedom Works. ***
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