Shaheen seeks to streamline rules for lenders
Thursday September 18, 2008
By: Kevin Landrigan
From: Nashua Telegraph
Thursday September 18, 2008
By: Kevin Landrigan
From: Nashua Telegraph
CONCORD – Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Jeanne Shaheen, saying a lack of federal oversight helped lead to a financial crisis on Wall Street, proposed reforms Wednesday.
Shaheen said all financial institutions, even those that aren't banks or insurance companies, should come under acceptable investment risk and disclosure requirements.
She would seek to streamline what she called a "patchwork" of competing oversight by numerous federal regulator groups and regulate all lenders based on services they offer.
"If investment banks are in the mortgage loan business, they should be subject to those regulations that are the same as mortgage banks have to," Shaheen said during a conference call with Sen. Bryan Dorgan, D-N.D.
Shaheen faulted her Republican opponent, U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu, for failing to provide enough leadership.
"The root cause of this crisis is the deterioration of regulation in mortgage markets," Shaheen said.
"John Sununu sat on the banking committee in the Senate for five years while this crisis was developing and did nothing to prevent it."
Sununu did propose legislation to strengthen regulation over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac five years before the two government-sponsored agencies, linked to more than half of the nation's residential mortgages, needed a federal bailout earlier this month.
"Jeanne Shaheen obviously has no idea what she is talking about. We have a crisis in our housing and our mortgage markets. I saw these problems coming five years ago and wrote regulation-toughening legislation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac," Sununu said in response.
Sununu wrote legislation in 2006 to create a national regulatory system for insurance companies. The nation's governors and national lobby of state legislators opposed it, claiming it would have weakened state powers.
In March, Sununu endorsed Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's plan to modernize financial services regulation that included Sununu's proposal for an optional, national insurance charter.
"On issue after issue, I have led the effort to improve the approach and the oversight that federal government has in these areas," Sununu said.
Shaheen said all financial institutions, even those that aren't banks or insurance companies, should come under acceptable investment risk and disclosure requirements.
She would seek to streamline what she called a "patchwork" of competing oversight by numerous federal regulator groups and regulate all lenders based on services they offer.
"If investment banks are in the mortgage loan business, they should be subject to those regulations that are the same as mortgage banks have to," Shaheen said during a conference call with Sen. Bryan Dorgan, D-N.D.
Shaheen faulted her Republican opponent, U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu, for failing to provide enough leadership.
"The root cause of this crisis is the deterioration of regulation in mortgage markets," Shaheen said.
"John Sununu sat on the banking committee in the Senate for five years while this crisis was developing and did nothing to prevent it."
Sununu did propose legislation to strengthen regulation over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac five years before the two government-sponsored agencies, linked to more than half of the nation's residential mortgages, needed a federal bailout earlier this month.
"Jeanne Shaheen obviously has no idea what she is talking about. We have a crisis in our housing and our mortgage markets. I saw these problems coming five years ago and wrote regulation-toughening legislation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac," Sununu said in response.
Sununu wrote legislation in 2006 to create a national regulatory system for insurance companies. The nation's governors and national lobby of state legislators opposed it, claiming it would have weakened state powers.
In March, Sununu endorsed Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's plan to modernize financial services regulation that included Sununu's proposal for an optional, national insurance charter.
"On issue after issue, I have led the effort to improve the approach and the oversight that federal government has in these areas," Sununu said.
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