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June
2001
NAMB Prepares Privacy Policy for Members
If you were thinking of investing your time and money into information
and materials on the Consumer Privacy and Protection Act (also known as
the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999), you may
want to be a bit more patient. NAMB's General
Counsel, Lotstein Buckman,
is preparing a privacy policy notice that most brokers may utilize to
comply with the notice requirements of the new federal privacy law, Gramm-Leach-Bliley. Some brokers who have more
complicated scenarios (e.g., brokers who share client information with
non-affiliates and/or brokers who share client information pursuant to
joint marketing agreements) will not be able to use the document without
revision. The document will be posted on the NAMB website. This
information will be available to you well in advance of the July 1, 2001 enactment date.
Sen. Sarbanes Takes Over Senate Banking
Committee
Sen. James Jeffords (R-VT) announced his resignation from the Republican
Party on May 24, as he switched his party affiliation to independent.
With this shift, the Democrats now control the U.S. Senate, the chamber
and all its committees. This means that Sen. Phil Gramm
(R-TX) loses his chairmanship of the Senate Banking Committee. Sen. Paul
Sarbanes (D-MD), ranking Democrat on the panel, will fill his seat as
chair in early June. Other committee prospects are: Robert Byrd (D-WV) to
take the Appropriations Committee chair and John Kerry (D-MA) to take the
Small Business Committee.
Sen.
Sarbanes to Introduce 'Predatory Lending Consumer Protection Act of 2001'
Sen. Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) plans to introduce a bill, similar to HR 1051
introduced by Rep. John LaFalce (D-NY) in the House, entitled
"Predatory Lending Consumer Protection Act of 2001," which has
been co-signed by Sens. Dodd (D-CT), Stabenow
(D-MI), Corzine (D-NJ) and Kerry (D-MA). While
the timing of the bill is uncertain, members of NAMB have been contacting
their Senator's office discouraging them from signing this bill. As
committee chairman, Sen. Sarbanes could ostensibly order a markup and
eventual committee vote on this bill, and the Democratic leadership could
then bring it to the Senate floor.
Predatory Lending Bill Defeated in Louisiana
Atlanta Predatory Lending Ordinance Proposed
The Louisiana Mortgage Lenders Association helped defeat a predatory
lending bill last month by a vote of 3 to 2. The predatory lending bill,
which was introduced in March to the Louisiana state house, was
modeled after the North Carolina bill. The bill
passed the house after being severely amended and was passed down to the
state senate commerce committee, where it was finally killed. An
ordinance by an Atlanta council member to
prohibit all business entities and their affiliates, which have been
abusive, unscrupulous and misleading in their lending practices from
doing business with the city of Atlanta was introduced on
May 15.
Alabama Governor to Sign State Licensing Bill
The Alabama Mortgage Brokers Association received some good news during
its annual convention last month. It was announced that three years of
lobbying efforts had paid off when a state licensing bill was passed by
the house on May 17th. It is anticipated that the bill will be signed by
the governor in early June and will go in effect January 2002. The new
licensing requirements include 12 hours of continuing education through
NAMB or the Mortgage Bankers Association.
GSE Hearings Began in May
A Senate housing panel has scheduled a hearing to examine the
effectiveness of Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight's
supervision of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Top executives of the two GSEs testified in May before the House Banking
subcommittee on housing. OFHEO director Armando Falcon Jr. testified
about his agency's examinations of the two housing GSEs
and the status of GSEs' risk-based capital
rules, which OFHEO has completed but are currently being reviewed by the
Office of Management and Budget. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
has also been meeting. Rep. Baker (R-LA), chairman of the GSE
subcommittee, said the CBO report presents the facts.
Senate Confirms Four HUD Nominees
The Senate Banking Committee held confirmation hearings in May on four
HUD nominees. The president selected John Alphonso
R. Jackson, of Texas, as Deputy Secretary of HUD; Richard A. Hauser, of
Maryland, as General Counsel of HUD; Romolo A. Bernardi, of New York, as Assistant Secretary of HUD
for Community Planning and Development; and John Charles Weicher, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant
Secretary of HUD and serve as the Federal Housing Commissioner. The
assistant secretary chairs the Mortgage Review Board. Weicher
faced tough questioning by senators about his commitment to the Federal
Housing Administration single-family and multifamily programs.
As Expected, Fed Cuts Rates by
Half-point
As expected, on May 15, the Federal Reserve cut
interest rates by half a percentage point, reducing it to 4 percent, the
lowest in seven years. Most economists expected the move, although some
above-forecast indicators had led a few to expect a smaller cut. The rate
cut did not translate into an immediate decline in 30-year mortgage rates.
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