President Obama is standing up for average Americans by threatening to veto a Republican bill that would undo important consumer protections.
The President issued his veto threat in a Statement of Administration Policy:
Americans deserve clear and easy to understand disclosures of the cost of buying and financing a home, which is why the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act directed the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to streamline conflicting disclosures that were required under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. The Know Before You Owe regulation issued by the CFPB almost two years ago fulfills this mandate by requiring mortgage lenders and settlement agents to provide homebuyers with simpler forms that explain the true cost of buying their home at least three days before closing. This summer, the CFPB extended the effective date for these requirements by two months, to last Saturday, October 3, 2015, to provide for a smooth transition and avoid unnecessary disruptions to busy families seeking to close on a new home at the beginning of the school year.
H.R. 3192 would revise the effective date for the Know Before You Owe rule to February 1, 2016, and would shield lenders from liability for violations for loans originated before February 1 so long as lenders made a good faith effort to comply.
The CFPB has already clearly stated that initial examinations will evaluate good faith efforts by lenders. The Administration strongly opposes H.R. 3192, as it would unnecessarily delay implementation of important consumer protections designed to eradicate opaque lending practices that contribute to risky mortgages, hurt homeowners by removing the private right of action for violations, and undercut the Nation’s financial stability.
If the President were presented with H.R. 3192, his senior advisors would recommend that he veto the bill.
Every single Republican presidential candidate has vowed to kill the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) if they are elected to be the nation’s next president. Getting rid of consumer protections in near the top of the to-do list for the Republican Party.
The current bill, which is misnamed the Homebuyers Assistance Act, would set the country back on the path to the bad old days that created Great Recession. Risky mortgages caused many people to lose their homes, and Republicans are anxious to repeat the mistakes of their recent past.
President Obama’s veto threat won’t get any attention in the mainstream press, but his willingness to fight for ordinary Americans is why he is more important now than ever, and the stakes in 2016 couldn’t be higher.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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