NFHA Supports Ranking Member Maxine Waters’ Bid to Lead House Financial Services Committee
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) supports House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) Ranking Member Maxine Waters’ bid to serve as Chairwoman in the 120th Congress. Representative Waters has been a steadfast champion of fair and affordable housing and equitable community development throughout her barrier-breaking leadership in Congress.
U.S. voters have spoken loudly and clearly. They want leaders they can trust and who will address their concerns about making housing and other critical needs affordable; weeding out corruption and self-dealing; and putting the needs of people in this country first. Our nation is in the throes of a fair and affordable housing crisis, and the HFSC needs a leader that will pursue a robust agenda of oversight and legislation to:
- Uphold crucial fair housing and lending rights;
- Make renting or buying a home affordable; and
- Further fair housing and equitable community development in every ZIP code.
Rep. Waters has demonstrated her commitment to fair and affordable housing time and again through championing the Fair Housing Act and its full enforcement, as well as pursuing significant legislation benefiting all the people of America, including:
- Fighting to protect and fully fund the Fair Housing Initiatives Program, the only federal source of support for community-based fair housing organizations on the ground across the U.S. These local groups handle three in four housing discrimination complaints filed in this country, giving direct help to people facing housing injustice and insecurity, from a veteran with a disability denied a reasonable accommodation to a family pushed toward an unlawful eviction.
- Helping enact the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and its establishment of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), including the CFPB’s Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity, which was designed by NFHA. To date, the CFPB has returned over $21 billion to consumers harmed by discrimination and unfair and deceptive lending practices.
- Leading creation of Emergency Rental Assistance Programs to support families during and after the COVID-19 crisis incorporated into the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. These critical laws helped 12 million households avoid eviction during the global pandemic.
- Introducing the Homeowners Assistance Fund to support hardest-hit homeowners during the COVID-19 crisis as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which helped over 500,000 homeowners avoid foreclosure and helped thwart a national foreclosure crisis during the pandemic.
- Championing down payment assistance for first-generation homebuyers and the buyers the market needs through the Downpayment Toward Equity Act and other legislation, which would enable 5 million net new homebuyers in rural, urban, and suburban communities throughout the U.S. This would also help teachers, first responders, and more overcome the primary barrier to homeownership: a lack of down payment.
- Securing passage of the bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, including key reforms to begin to address appraisal bias and establishing a pilot to increase the availability of small-dollar mortgages so more creditworthy families can enter homeownership, especially in the Midwest and South.
- Advancing significant investments in housing as infrastructure to support people’s everyday needs through the Build Back Better Act and the Housing Crisis Response Act, which would provide $150 billion in targeted housing assistance to address the nation’s fair and affordable housing crisis, including much-needed demand-side solutions to make housing more affordable for everyday people.
- Embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives through the Offices of Minority and Women Inclusion throughout the federal financial regulatory agencies.
Rep. Waters’ experience as both Chairwoman and Ranking Member of the HFSC across different administrations and Congresses, and through varying housing market conditions, is needed in this moment to ensure Congress and the Administration deliver fair and affordable housing for all.
For interviews and inquiries: Jglover@Nationalfairhousing.org
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About the National Fair Housing Alliance
The National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) leads a coalition that works to build inclusive, well-resourced, and resilient communities; expand equitable opportunities; and end housing discrimination.