Both the U.S. House and Senate are in the midst of a two-week recess that concludes on April 8. The break followed a busy March where all twelve Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 funding bills for all federal agencies – including HUD, VA, and the USDA – were passed before their midnight deadlines on March 8 and March 22, respectively, in a “two-tiered” approach. As individual House Republicans continued to resign from their respective seats, the party achieved the slimmest majority in the chamber in modern U.S. history.  MBA has testified twice at the request of key House congressional committees since the start of the year. And MBA members advocated before their elected officials during our annual National Advocacy Conference. 

Top 3 Things to Know from Washington

1. Appropriators Reach Deal on a Second Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 “Minibus” Funding Package; NFIP to be extended until October 2024. 

The House and Senate passed the final six appropriations bills, which contains $1.2 trillion in funding through the end of FY24 for a remaining set of federal agencies including the Pentagon, the Treasury Department, IRS, and other key financial regulators, the Homeland Security, State, Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Departments – and the Congress itself (via Legislative Branch appropriations), in an expediated fashion on March 22nd. The Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024 included the extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) authorities at FEMA retroactively from September 30, 2023 through September 30, 2024. Full text of the bill is available here. 

Agencies such the Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), VA, and Agriculture (USDA) and their federal housing programs used by MBA members were funded through the end of FY24 by enactment of a prior “minibus” bill before midnight on March 8, the potential enactment of all twelve appropriations bills before May of this year would negate a one percent “across-the-board” cut (“rescission”) of all discretionary federal spending (per the terms of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) enacted last June). Those potential FRA limits on defense and non-defense spending were agreed to in the 2023 bargain made to suspend the federal debt ceiling through January 1, 2025.

2. Mark Jones, 2024 MBA Chairman testifies before House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee 

MBA’s 2024 Chairman Mark Jones, President of Union Home Mortgage, testified before the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Economic Opportunity Subcommittee on Thursday, February 15. The hearing, entitled “Sink or Swim? A Deep Dive into the Current State of VA’s Home Loan Program in a Competitive Market," began with an initial panel featuring John Bell, Executive Director of the Loan Guaranty Service at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. A second hearing panel included Jones, along with Ed DeMarco, President of the Housing Policy Council, and Steve Sharpe, a staff attorney for the National Consumer Law Center.

Reactions from key subcommittee members focused primarily on Bell’s testimony – and his responses to questions – regarding VA’s proposed Veterans’ Assistance Servicing Purchase (“VASP”) program. A video recording of the hearing can be found here. Click here for Mark Jones’ written testimony. 

Jones’s testimony centered on the following MBA recommendations the VA should consider, including: 1) implementing a permanent partial claim option; 2) tying the level of the VA Home Loan funding fee to the actual credit risk within the program, which would lower costs to Veterans by removing recent fee increases imposed to pay for unrelated benefits; and 3) delegating management of VA appraiser panels to lenders – the same way that the process works with every other government mortgage loan program. Jones also highlighted the need for more details from the agency regarding VASP, and effectively responded to a number of questions related to the current state of VA Home Loan program operations.

3. MBA’s Chief Economist testifies before House Financial Services Subcommittee

On Wednesday, March 20, MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni, Ph.D., testified before the House Financial Services Committee’s Housing and Insurance Subcommittee at a hearing entitled, “The Characteristics and Challenges of Today’s Homebuyers.” 

Fratantoni reviewed current data on various aspects of the mortgage market with the subcommittee members, focusing on homebuyer characteristics, the range of loan products in today’s market, available sources of financing, and obstacles that housing consumers and lenders are facing. He also examined trends in the rental market, including that for single-family rentals (SFR), housing supply concerns, and regulatory and insurance availability challenges facing our industry.

Fratantoni fielded questions on a wide range of topics, including: the efficacy of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, inflation and its impact on the housing market, “non-traditional” avenues for the financing/purchasing of housing (e.g., accessory dwelling units), mortgage assumptions, demand-based housing incentives (e.g., downpayment assistance, first time home buyer tax credits, etc.), the essential role of title insurance, small-dollar mortgage lending by banks, the role of institutional investors in the current marketplace, Veterans’ housing, causes of the housing supply shortfall, local zoning strategies, and the rising cost of homeowners’ insurance due to wildfires and other natural disasters. Mike’s written statement are available here. Click here to view a recording of the LIVESTREAM of this hearing.

Current Call to Action

Tell Congress: Co-Sponsor MBA-Supported “Trigger Leads” Legislation
A Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA) Call to Action was launched in February asking elected officials in both the House and Senate to cosponsor two critical legislative measures to eliminate mortgage trigger lead abuses while preserving the use of prescreen reports in appropriately limited circumstances. Congressmen John Rose (R-TN) and Ritchie Torres (D-NY) introduced H.R. 7297, the Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act of 2024. H.R. 7297 is a revamped, bipartisan House bill that evolved from discussions regarding separate proposals (H.R. 4198 and H.R. 2656). This legislation – which is identical to S. 3502, as introduced by Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Bill Hagerty (R-TN), would curb the consumer harm resulting from firms seeking to confuse and/or deceive mortgage applicants by inundating them with phone calls or direct mail solicitations.

MBA will continue to work with the House and Senate bills’ sponsors – and policymakers on both sides of the aisle – to advance these bills in both the House and Senate. Join the thousands of MAA members who have already contacted their elected officials. Act now and ask them to support legislative efforts to curb the abusive use of trigger leads. 

Burton C. Wood Legislative Service Award

MBA presented its annual Burton C. Wood Legislative Service Award to Christine (Chrissi) Rhea, President/CEO of the Mortgage Investors Group (MIG), at MBA's 2024 National Advocacy Conference (NAC) last month. The award is given annually to an MBA member in recognition of his or her sustained superior legislative service to the association and the real estate finance industry.

Chrissi is the former Chair of the Residential Board of Governors (RESBOG) where she was instrumental in engaging MBA to fight the abusive use of trigger leads - a key priority for MBA’s residential members. The introduction of MBA-supported legislation on this topic was a direct result of the collective efforts of attendees who participated during NAC23. In addition, Chrissi played an active role during last year’s “Advocacy in August” campaign and met with Congressman John Rose (R-TN), lead Republican House sponsor of the trigger leads bill, outside of Nashville to thank him for his efforts.

For years, Chrissi has been an avid Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA) member and a top MORPAC contributor. She has also expanded MBA’s advocacy efforts company-wide, initiating both MAA and MORPAC company campaigns at MIG. Congratulations, Chrissi!

National Advocacy Conference 2024

Our recent National Advocacy Conference (NAC24) provided an opportunity for MBA members from all over the country to gather in Washington, D.C. to lobby their elected officials. Nearly half of the approximately 400 registrants were first-time attendees, with 273 participating in over 250 Capitol Hill meetings. Those MBA members pressed their lawmakers on policy priorities ranging from mortgage credit trigger leads to tax policy and housing affordability to the need for partial claim authority for the VA Home Loan program. Elected officials and their top aides heard from industry constituents about issues that impact housing consumers and mortgage business operations in their respective states and districts.

Registrants also had the chance to hear congressional, regulatory agency, and political perspectives directly from: House Chief Deputy Whip Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), Senate Banking Committee members Jack Reed (D-RI) and Katie Britt (R-AL), key House Financial Services Committee members Bill Huizenga (R-MI) and Brittany Pettersen (D-CO), HUD Chief of Staff Julienne Joseph, and renowned political pundit Charlie Cook. The National Museum of Women in the Arts was a fitting location for the conference’s signature reception, with both elected officials and key congressional staffers in attendance. Save the Date for NAC25 – April 8-9, 2025, in Washington, D.C.!  We also offer a special thank you to our event sponsors! 

MAA Action Week 2024

Participate in MBA’s annual Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA) Action Week campaign, April 29-May 3. SIGN UP today and promote the importance of advocacy within your company or organization. This industry-wide campaign allows ALL of us to take part and engage in the legislative and regulatory process on issues that directly impact real estate finance professionals. 

MAA is a tool for industry professionals to speak directly to policymakers at the federal and state levels when important legislation is up for debate. Having regular contact with your lawmakers and their staff members through MAA’s Calls to Action is critical to ensure your elected officials understand how policy issues affect you, your customers, and the communities you serve. Membership in MAA can make a difference in how YOU and your company drive positive change by adding your voice to our collective efforts. There is strength in numbers, and when a large number of people weigh in, policymakers pay attention.

During Action Week, MBA’s Legislative and Political Affairs team will host MAA’s Quarterly Webinar Series on Thursday, May 2, at 2:00 PM ET. Register here. Hear key policy updates – along with case studies describing how your participation helps the MBA staff advocate more effectively on behalf of our association’s members to help achieve pro-industry outcomes. 

MORPAC

On March 18, MORPAC hosted its annual fundraising dinner for top supporters to officially kick off NAC24, raising over $50,000. Since January 1, 2023, MORPAC has been able to raise and disburse over $1.3 million in the 2024 election cycle to incumbents’ re-election efforts, leadership PACs, and national party campaign committees. Stay tuned for MORPAC’s Mid-Year Report, which will detail the campaign’s progress through June 30, set to launch by end of summer. You can also view MORPAC’s 2023 Year End Report.

Save the date for MORPAC’s 7th annual Action Week, June 3-7, 2024. In a divided Congress, our bipartisan advocacy efforts have never been more important. Help us make an impact by actively participating in the political process and showing your support for our industry’s PAC during this important week. 

Check out the highlights from last year’s campaign. Interested in participating, please contact Erin Reilly or call 202-557-2751 for additional details.

Connecting at Conferences

MBA Advocacy hosted signature advocacy receptions and fundraisers during MBA’s Q1 conference season, which included events at the Independent Mortgage Bankers Conference (New Orleans, LA), Commercial/Multifamily Finance Convention & Expo (San Diego, CA), and Servicing Solutions Conference & Expo (Orlando, FL). Reception attendees had the opportunity to hear directly from MBA leadership and staff about our ongoing industry priorities, as well as the importance of engagement and contributing directly to MORPAC.

Industry advocates gathered during advocacy events at MBA-sponsored conferences

Upcoming MBA Conferences 

MAA and MORPAC will host advocacy receptions at the following MBA-sponsored conferences:

Secondary and Capital Markets Conference and Expo
May 19-22, 2024
Marriott Marquis, New York, NY

Chairman's Conference
June 9-12, 2024
Ritz Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara, CA

Annual Convention and Expo
October 27-30, 2024
Colorado Convention Center, Denver, CO