Maxine Waters

Ms. WATERS

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Madam Speaker, it has been nearly 17 years since major reform legislation to address common problems with credit reporting has been enacted into law. To that end, I am pleased that, earlier this year, the House passed H.R. 3621, the Comprehensive Credit Reporting Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation, and Transparency Act. Representative Gottheimer's bipartisan bill complements those efforts to ensure we have a well-functioning credit reporting system that is streamlined and easy to use and that better protects the data of all consumers. Republicans were in charge when Equifax exposed sensitive data of 150 million Americans. What was their response? Nothing. Earlier this year, the House passed the Comprehensive CREDIT Act to overhaul our broken credit reporting system and enhance cybersecurity of the credit reporting bureaus. Republicans voted no. Representative Gottheimer offered this bill that would strengthen cybersecurity of Equifax and other credit bureaus, and now Republicans are saying no. We have some Republicans who oppose giving the CFPB expanded authority, although I would note Ranking Member McHenry introduced H.R. 3821 that would do just that, giving the CFPB authority of cybersecurity for the credit bureaus. The bill before us would do the same. I would urge Republicans to reconsider their opposition to the bill. I urge an ``aye'' vote on this commonsense bill. Madam Speaker, I include in the Record support for this bill from the Americans for Financial Reform, the National Consumer Law Center, Consumer Action, Consumer Federation of America, Consumer Reports, National Association of Consumer Advocates, World Privacy Forum, and also the National Association of Realtors. June 23, 2020. Dear Chairwoman Waters: The undersigned consumer organizations write to support H.R. 5332, the Protecting Your Credit Score Act of 2019 (Gottheimer). This bill will address serious problems in the credit reporting system and empower consumers by providing them with much greater access to and control over their own information. Credit reports and credit scores play a huge role in determining a consumer's financial health. Not only do they determine a consumer's ability to obtain credit at a fair price, but they are used by many other sectors--insurance companies, landlords and even employers. Despite their importance, credit reports are also full of errors, which can cost a consumer thousands of dollars in higher-priced credit, or worse yet, result in the denial of a job, insurance coverage, an apartment rental, or the ability to open a small business or buy a house. The Federal Trade Commission's definitive study showed that 21% of consumers had verified errors in their credit reports, 13% had errors that affected their credit scores, and 5% had errors serious enough to cause them to be denied or pay more for credit. Trying to fix these errors can be a Kafka-esque nightmare in which the Big Three nationwide consumer reporting agencies (CRAs)--Equifax, Experian and TransUnion--consistently favor the side of the creditor or debt collector (``the furnisher'') over the consumer. As documented in NCLC's report Automated lniustice Redux (2019), some of the most serious problems include consumers having their credit files ``mixed'' with the wrong person, being unable to remove negative information even after court judgments in their favor, the after-effects of identity theft when CRAs don't believe the victim, and being labeled as dead when they are alive and breathing. The report also documents the massive number of credit and consumer reporting complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), over 380,000 since July 2011, which is often the top category of complaints to the CFPB. The irony of these problems is that credit reports consist of our information. Yet consumers are only entitled to free access to this information once a year and in certain other limited situations, despite the fact that the Big Three nationwide CRAs are making tens of millions selling our financial data. Also, consumers are not entitled to our own credit scores for free, while these same scores are being sold to creditors and others for hefty profits. Last, but not least, there are serious issues with data security at the nationwide CRAs, of the type that led to the massive Equifax data breach in 2017. These data security issues have not yet been adequately addressed. The Protecting Your Credit Score Act of 2019 would address these issues by: Fixing the broken system for credit reporting disputes by (1) creating a CFPB ombudsperson that will have the power to resolve persistent errors when CRAs don't fix them properly, and to make referrels to the Office of Supervision or the Office of Enforcement for supevisory or enforcement action when CRAs don't comply with their disput investigation reponsibilities and (2) requiring CRAs to dedicate sufficient resources and provide proper training to personnel who handle disputes. Giving consumers the tools they need to access their rights, understand their creditworthiness, and control their financial destinies by (1) giving consumers the right to unlimited free credit reports and free credit scores online; (2) requiring the Big Three nationwide CRAs to create a simple, easy-to-use portal tool to access online credit reports and credit scores, as well to exercise other important rights such as placing a security freeze, initiating a dispute, and opting out of prescreening (i.e., the use of credit report information to generate offers of credit). Improving credit reporting accuracy by (2) requiring CRAs to conduct periodic audits to check for accuracy and (2) mandating that Big Three nationwide CRAs use all 9 digits of the consumer's Social Security number when matching information from a lender to a consumer's file, thus preventing mixed files, which are one of the worst types of errors. Improving data security for credit reports by giving the CFPB the authority to write rules under the Gramm-Leach- Bliley Act to govern the Big Three nationwide CRAs. Give consumers a tool to compel CRAs to fix a credit report by providing them with a right to seek injunctive relief so that a court could order a CRA to correct an error or otherwise follow the law. There are a number of other important reforms in the bill, such as giving consumers the right to opt out of the selling or sharing of information about them that does not fall into the FCRA's current definition of ``consumer report'' and creating a comprehensive registry of all consumer reporting agencies. The above reforms are urgently needed in order to ensure that consumers are treated fairly by the credit reporting system and that they have the access and control that they should be entitled to. Thus, we support the Protecting Your Credit Score Act of 2019 an look forward to working with you to swiftly enact it into law. Thank you for your attention. If you have any questions about this letter, please contact Chi Chi Wu (cwu@nclc.org) at (617) 542-8010. Sincerely, Americans for Financial Reform, National Consumer Law Center (on behalf of its low-income clients), Consumer Action, Consumer Federation of America, Consumer Reports, National Association of Consumer Advocates,

Ms. WATERS

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, I have additional speakers.

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Crist), who is a member of the Appropriations Committee.

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, if Mr. McHenry has no more speakers, I am prepared to close.

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time is remaining.

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, before I move into my closing, I would like to correct Mr. McHenry, who said the FDIC approved the OCC CRA rule this week. That is not correct. My staff just called the FDIC to confirm that they did not approve the rule.

Ms. WATERS. I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina.

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Madam Speaker, I include in the Record multiple letters from dozens of consumers, community and civil rights groups in support of H.J. Res. 90. Chief Counsel's Office, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Washington, DC. Attention: Comment Processing We are writing to oppose the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of Comptroller of the Currency's (OCC) proposed changes that would seriously weaken the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) The U.S. Conference of Mayors has strong policy supporting the CRA. The law was passed in 1977 to end redlining, and to meet the credit needs of communities where banks do business. Discrimination in lending still exists. But the FDIC and OCC proposed changes would make the banks less accountable to their communities through complex and confusing performance measures on CRA exams while oversimplifying how bank's performances to local needs are measured. Moreover, public input into the process will be difficult and limited. This will result in significantly fewer loans, investments and services to communities most in need of more credit and capital. The CRA has been of enormous benefit to low- and -moderate income Americans. For example, since 1996, CRA-covered banks issued more than 27 million small business loans in low-and moderate-income tracts, totaling $1.093 trillion, and $1.076 trillion in community development loans that support affordable housing and economic development projects benefitting low-and moderate-income communities. While such results are very good, the proposed rule will make it all but impossible to continue such impressive results. Moreover, much more can be achieved by regulations that modernize the CRA to take into account changes in the banking industry and the economy. For example, independent mortgage companies not covered by CRA make more than 50 percent of the home mortgages in our nation. If anything, the CRA should be strengthened to reflect changing demographics and changes in the financial industry, and not weaken the CRA as the proposed rule would do. We strongly encourage you to reconsider a proposed rule, and look to modernizing CRA that will truly benefit low and moderate income citizens. Sincerely, Justin Wilson, Alexandria, VA; Satya Rhodes-Conway, Madison, WI; Alan L. Nagy, Newark, CA; Alan Webber, Santa Fe, NM; Sam Weaver, Boulder, CO; Carlo DeMaria Jr., Everett, MA; Robert Garcia, Long Beach, CA; Steve Benjamin, Columbia, SC; Jerome A. Prince, Gary, IN; Brian C. Wahler, Piscataway, NJ; Gregory J. Oravec, Port St. Lucie, FL; Steve Adler, Austin, TX; Robert Donchez, Bethlehem, PA; Jack W. Bradley, Lorain, OH; David J. Berger, Lima, OH; Scott Conger, Jackson, TN; Joe Coviello, Cape Coral, FL; Denny Doyle, Beaverton, OR; Hillary Schieve, Reno, NV; Trey Mendez, Brownsville, TX; Patrick J. Furey, Torrance, CA; Marcia A. Leclerc, East Hartford, CT; Jesse Arreguin, Berkeley, CA; Jim Kenney, Philadelphia, PA; Nan Whaley, Dayton, OH; Christopher L. Cabaldon, West Sacramento, CA; Martin J. Walsh, Boston, MA; Allan Ekberg, Tukwila, WA; Jorge O. Elorza, Providence, RI; Juan Carlos Bermudez, Doral, FL; Frank C. Ortis, Pembroke Pines, FL; Bryan K. Barnett, Rochester Hills, MI; Jacob Frey, Minneapolis, MN; Ron Nirenberg, San Antonio, TX; Joy Cooper, Hallandale Beach, FL; Lyda Krewson, St. Louis, MO; Steve Schewel, Durham, NC; John Giles, Mesa, AZ; James B. Hovland, Edina, MN; Nathan Blackwell, St. Cloud, FL; Hazelle Rogers, Lauderdale Lakes, FL; Eric Johnson, Dallas, TX; Mark W. Mitchell, Tempe, AZ; Tom Dailly, Schaumburg, IL; Andy Berke, Chattanooga, TN; Pauline Russo Cutter, San Leandro, CA; Steve Gawron, Muskegon, MI; William Peduto, Pittsburgh, PA; Lioneld Jordan, Fayetteville, AR; Muriel Bowser, Washington, DC; Regina Romero, Tucson, AZ; Geoff Kors, Palm Springs, CA; Acquanetta Warren, Fontana, CA; Michael B. Hancock, Denver, CO; Mike Duggan, Detroit, MI; Leirion Gaylor Baird, Lincoln, NE; Keisha Lance Bottoms, Atlanta, GA; Greg Fischer, Louisville, KY; Victoria Woodards, Tacoma, WA; Tim Keller, Albuquerque, NM; Patrick L. Wojahn, College Park, MD; Louis `Woody' L. Brown, Largo, FL; Ted Wheeler, Portland, OR; Erin J. Mendenhall, Salt Lake City, UT; Daniel J. Stermer, Weston, FL; John Cranley, Cincinnati, OH; Lori E. Lightfoot, Chicago, IL; Carolyn G. Goodman, Las Vegas, NV; Christina Muryn, Findlay, OH; James Allen Joines, Winston-Salem, NC; Sam Liccardo, San Jose, CA; Jon Mitchell, New Bedford, MA; Robert Restaino, Niagara Falls, NY; Chris Koos, Normal, IL; Lily Mei, Fremont, CA; Bridget Donnell Newton, Rockville, MD; Jeffrey Z. Slavin, Somerset, MD; Bernard `Jack' C. Young, Baltimore, MD; Kenneth D. Miyagishima, Las Cruces, NM; Carol Dutra-Vernaci, Union City, CA; Mary Casillas Salas, Chula Vista, CA; Lucy K. Vinis, Eugene, OR; Thomas `Tom' C. Henry, Fort Wayne, IN; Debra March, Henderson, NV; Andrew J. Ginther, Columbus, OH; Kevin McKeown, Santa Monica, CA; Anne McEnerny-Ogle, Vancouver, WA; Michael Vandersteen, Sheboygan, WI; David Anderson, Kalamazoo, MI; Melvin Carter, St. Paul, MN; Ashira Mohammed, Pembroke Park, FL; Amy Bublak, Turlock, CA; Daniel Rivera; Lawrence, MA; William `Bill' Edwards, South Fulton, GA; Richard C. David, Binghamton, NY; Katrina Foley, Costa Mesa, CA; Shari Cantor, West Hartford, CT; Rex Hardin, Pompano Beach, FL; Tracy Johnson, Lockington, OH.

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, I would like to close by thanking Representative Meeks for his leadership on this issue. I appreciate the support we have received from our colleagues in this effort. Make no mistake, unchecked, the OCC's final rule will harm low- income and minority communities that are disproportionately suffering during this COVID-19 crisis, and it will turn the Community Reinvestment Act into the community disinvestment act. In passing this Congressional Review Act resolution, we are not only nullifying the OCC rule, but we are sending two clear messages: regulators should be focused on protecting the economy from the pandemic and not on removing safeguards, and that after the pandemic, the OCC should go back to the drawing board and work with the Federal Reserve and FDIC to jointly issue a new rule that strengthens the Community Reinvestment Act and helps low-and moderate-income communities, including communities of color. For over a month now, by the thousands, Americans have been marching in the streets for justice. They are standing up against racism and fighting for justice for all. Just yesterday, this House passed historic legislation to reform our Nation's police forces and the unfair treatment so many people of color have experienced at the hands of those meant to serve and protect. As we unite to fight against discrimination in our criminal justice system, we must also fight against discrimination, disinvestment, and injustice in our financial system and economic injustice in our communities. The OCC's rule would encourage disinvestment in communities of color and lead to redlining on a massive scale. We must stand up against this blatant effort to economically disenfranchise hundreds of low-income and minority communities nationwide. So I want to say to my Members on the opposite side of the aisle: I have heard this theme that you support the Community Reinvestment Act but you don't support my bill. I would say to the Members: You can't have it both ways. Madam Speaker, I ask for an ``aye'' vote on H.J. Res. 90, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. WATERS

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support H.R. 7120, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which bans chokeholds, creates a national police misconduct registry, and makes it easier to prosecute police for their brutality, among many other much-needed provisions. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Congressional Black Caucus and everybody who worked so hard to make sure that we have this moment. The murder of George Floyd and the pleasure the murdering officer seemed to take in his power over a struggling Black man are nothing new. My heart broke when I first saw the video footage of the murder, not just for George Floyd and his loved ones, but also because this brutality and all the police violence against Black men and women before it have been used for centuries to terrorize, subjugate, and silence the Black community. I have been fighting against this since my first days as an activist and member of the California State Assembly, when I took on then-Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates, who popularized the chokehold maneuver, which killed over a dozen Black men in Los Angeles between 1975 and 1982. But now I would like to pay tribute to the brave men and women who for so many years have confronted bad cops, racist cops, brutal police chiefs, and the police protective leagues and unions who shield them from accountability. I want to pay tribute to Angela Davis, Elaine Brown, and the Black Panthers, who fought hard and sacrificed mightily fighting bad cops. And then there is Reverend Al Sharpton, who took up the fight against bad cops and assisted their families in getting legal representation when these issues were not popular. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Reverend Jackson, who worked with me to confront the racist L.A. Police Chief Daryl Gates. I want to thank Colin Kaepernick, who took the knee and challenged the killings and beatings of unarmed Blacks. And lastly, I want to thank Black Lives Matter: uncompromising, disruptive, energetic, and dedicated to undoing police killings and abuse. Mr. Speaker, I want to challenge the mayors and members of city councils and county commissioners who control police budgets to get the courage to reimagine what it means to serve and protect and undo the system of rogue cops that has gone on for far too long. In closing, Mr. Speaker, I want to say to the protesters: I stand with you. No justice, no peace.

Ms. WATERS

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 6800, the HEROES Act. This legislation includes a number of important proposals from the members of the Financial Services Committee and builds upon my proposal for more direct payments to families by providing a second round of stimulus payments for up to $6,000 per household. I am pleased that this bill includes legislation championed by myself and Representatives Heck and Scott to create a $100 billion emergency rental assistance fund and a $75 billion homeowner assistance fund. The bill also provides $11.5 billion for homeless assistance grants and $1 billion for new Section 8 vouchers to support persons experiencing homelessness. The HEROES Act also suspends negative credit reporting for all consumers. And to ensure that consumers, small businesses, and nonprofits can weather the pandemic, the bill suspends debt collection and requires forbearance and loan modifications for consumer and commercial loans. The HEROES Act strengthens the Defense Production Act to supercharge the production of diagnostic tests and personal protective equipment to protect our brave essential workers and help save American lives. Importantly, the legislation also provides new funding and expands technical assistance, government deposits, and partnerships to support our Nation's community development financial institutions, known as CDFIs, and minority depository institutions, MDIs, which serve our low- income communities particularly hit hard by the pandemic. Mr. Speaker, we are obligated to protect our Nation. The HEROES Act represents the response America needs to meet this crisis, so I urge all Members to support this critical legislation. We hear Members on both sides of the aisle talking about how much they love America, how much they love their constituents. Put up or shut up. Now is the time to do it.

Ms. WATERS

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his leadership and tough negotiations in support of this legislation, H.R. 266. I not only rise in support of this legislation, the Enhancement Act, I also would like to rise in support of what we are doing for the Health Care Enhancement Act in this bill. And I am going to take a moment to dedicate this legislation to my dear sister, who is dying in a hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, right now, infected by the coronavirus. This legislation provides $370 billion in funding for small businesses, as well as $100 billion for hospitals and coronavirus testing. I am pleased that we have been able to set aside $60 billion for our Nation's community development financial institutions, minority depository institutions, community banks, credit unions, certified development companies, and microlenders to directly lend to their small business customers, who are often minority-owned businesses. Small businesses and their workers all across the country are in dire need of assistance and will benefit from this bill. And so with that, Congress must now immediately turn to the next package of legislation to provide relief during the pandemic. We need to do much more to help renters, homeowners, people experiencing homelessness, and mom-and-pop landlords. As chairwoman of the Financial Services Committee, I am already working on additional coronavirus relief legislation, including legislation that creates a $100 billion emergency rental assistance fund and a $75 billion homeowner assistance fund. Madam Speaker, I support H.R. 266, and look forward to working with my colleagues on the next relief package.

Ms. WATERS

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, it is absolutely critical for Congress to take action to provide relief and assistance to the millions of people across the nation who are struggling in the midst of this national public health and economic emergency. I rise today to support the Senate Amendment to H.R. 748, now referred to as the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act or CARES Act, and to address several key issues. The legislation before us takes important steps to support consumers, renters, homeowners and people experiencing homelessness, to address the shortage of key medical supplies and equipment, to assist small businesses and local, territory and state governments, and to ensure that any federal aid to corporations has conditions and independent oversight. While it is clear that Congress must continue to take action to respond to and address this crisis, the passage of this bill is much needed for families and communities in the United States. The first draft of the Senate Republican bill failed to include important relief for consumers, homeowners, renters, and people experiencing homelessness. Thankfully, after I, and other Democrats spoke out about the lack of homeless assistance in the first package for Coronavirus relief, this bill now includes $4 billion for homeless assistance. There are over half a million people experiencing homelessness in America and the limited accommodation they have access to is often in emergency shelter facilities that have several beds in a single room. These cramped facilities are prime conditions for the spread of a virus, and people experiencing homelessness are also more vulnerable in that they often have limited access to health care services. Congress expects that the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will prioritize this vulnerable population in delivering assistance. This bill also includes a temporary moratorium on eviction filings for renters who are living in properties with federal backing or subsidies, as well as targeted rent relief for federally assisted renters. I continue to have concerns about other renters, particularly lower income renters who will not benefit from these provisions. The House bill, H.R. 6379, the Take Responsibility for Workers and Families Act, provided a $100 billion emergency rental assistance fund to help renters in paying their rent and utilities. Congress needs provide such assistance in a future package. Homeowners with federally backed loans will also get relief under this bill through a foreclosure moratorium and mortgage forbearance. Multifamily rental property owners with federally backed mortgages will also receive forbearance. I continue to have concerns about homeowners and rental property owners with mortgages that do not have federal backing and therefore will be excluded from this relief. I'm also concerned that the bill provides no funding for rural housing programs. Congress expects financial institutions, mortgage servicers, and landlords to ensure they are in compliance with the law and promptly provide clear and accessible notices to tenants and homeowners about their eligibility for relief under the law. While mortgage servicers have expressed concerns that they will not be eligible to access a Federal Reserve facility to ensure that businesses have access to financing, I believe that H.R. 748 is clear that mortgage servicers, like other businesses, are eligible for this financing. Indeed, the Federal Reserve already has sufficient authority to create a facility to ensure that mortgage servicers have liquidity. H.R. 748 builds on those authorities to ensure the Federal Reserve is responsive to this crisis and its actions complement other provisions in the bill, so Congress expects the Fed will act promptly to establish and implement this facility. Congress also expects that the Secretaries of Treasury and HUD, as well as the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency will use their robust authorities provided in the legislation and current law to ensure that the time periods allotted for foreclosure moratorium and forbearance are long enough to provide sufficient relief. We do not want homeowners to be forced to resume making payments when the worst economic impacts of the crisis have yet to subside. This bill also includes $4 billion in Community Development Block Grant funding to provide states and localities with flexible funding to address various community needs associated with COVID-19, including the provision of mobile health clinics. There is also $10 million to ensure that elderly households living in HUD-assisted housing have access to service coordinators and $2.5 million for fair housing enforcement and education. Congress has seen that in the aftermath of disasters, federal relief funding has often been spent in ways that discriminate against minorities and other protected classes of people. These additional funds are provided to focus the Federal response on ensuring that the funding in this bill is spent in ways that are not discriminatory. Democrats pushed to ensure the bill helps struggling student loan borrowers. The final bill pauses payments and suspends debt collection on most federal student loans until September 30th. It prohibits garnishment, tax seizure, benefits reduction, and interest accrual on most federal student loans, allowing borrowers to remain current for credit reporting and loan forgiveness program purposes. However, the bill does not provide similar relief for private student loan borrowers. It also does not provide any forgiveness of student loan debt. H.R. 6379 provided payment relief, debt forgiveness, and student loan forgiveness for federal and private student loan borrowers. Debt forgiveness and parity for private student loan borrowers should be addressed in any subsequent bill. I also believe we need to ensure that all Americans have access to the medical supplies they need. The bill includes $1,000,000,000 in additional funding for the Defense Production Act (DPA). The DPA provides emergency authority to prioritize contracts for essential materials, allocate scarce items to key industries, and provide incentives to companies to change production lines to provide items that are in need. In times of crisis, this authority ensures that U.S. production fulfills the crucial needs of the moment. We are in such a crisis where this authority is needed. There are countless reports of shortages of personal protection equipment, such as masks and gowns, and other life-saving items, such as ventilators. As we begin to ramp up critical diagnostic testing for larger and larger parts of our population, our medical personnel are facing shortages of this critical equipment. Without additional supplies, we cannot safely protect our frontline medical professionals so that they can administer the very tests that can make a key difference in combatting this deadly virus. Congress is providing the increase of funding to carry out the Defense Production Act with the understanding that these funds are to be used to help expand our domestic productive capacity for critically needed medical supplies or equipment, to purchase such supplies or equipment where necessary and to address other needs that directly relate to meeting the emergency medical needs arising directly from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Administration should use the funding provided in the bill to increase domestic productive capacity for such supplies and equipment by, for example, expanding a company's manufacturing capability through the purchase, retrofit, or installation of equipment; developing a producer's ability to be able to surge production as needed; making purchasing agreements to ensure that a company's manufacturing capacity will be economically sustainable; and/ or making various financial instruments available (such as direct investments, loans, and loan guarantees) to enable any of these uses. If there are other critical needs that come out of this crisis where DPA funding would be necessary, the Committee on Financial Services, which has jurisdiction over this authority, should be consulted prior entering into any commitment to grants, loans, or purchases using this funding. As the Chairwoman of the Committee with jurisdiction over the Defense Production Act, I will be reviewing both FEMA and HHS's efforts to use the authorities of the Defense Production Act, and I will be closely examining how this new $1,000,000,000 is going to be used to ensure the health and safety of people living in the United States. States, territories, and municipalities are on the frontlines of responding to this pandemic. Hospitals are already experiencing severe supply shortages, and there aren't enough hospital beds or health care workers to get patients suffering from this virus what they need. It is absolutely critical that we support our local governments as they respond to the crisis and other unanticipated expenses--especially in the face of sharply rising interest rates on municipal bonds and declining local government sales tax revenue. In addition to $150 billion in grants to states and cities in this bill, H.R. 748 authorizes the Treasury Department to provide financing to a Federal Reserve facility that would support states and municipal government financing, including through the purchase of longer dated maturity bonds. The bill also instructs the Treasury Secretary to endeavor to lend through the Federal Reserve's facility to states and cities to help them meet the huge needs they will see in the months ahead. Given how urgent the needs are, Congress expects this program to be stood up quickly, and for the support that it provides for state and local borrowing to be robust, including through the direct purchase of new debt issuances and long-dated municipal securities. The small businesses in this country form the backbone of our nation's economy. This bill provides major funding to ensure small businesses are able to continue to serve their local communities during these difficult times. The final bill includes loan forgiveness to small businesses for expenses related to utilities, rent, interest on mortgages, and payroll, which should help struggling small businesses will have access to funds to cover their immediate costs. There are also funds available that Treasury and the Federal Reserve can and should immediately deploy to support small businesses, and we will be examining closely how these provisions are implemented. The financial crisis of 2008 left millions of Americans stretched financially, especially women, minorities, and diverse-owned businesses. Unfortunately, many of them are still recovering from the last crisis and will be vulnerable to any negative impacts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. I am pleased that this legislation includes $10 million for the Minority Business Development Administration. MBDA will be able to direct funding to its minority business development centers, which provide local support directly to minority businesses within the communities they serve. These funds should be quickly deployed. Congress should be mindful that $10 million is only a down payment, and more funding is needed for grants and other assistance to provide access to capital for minority businesses to ensure they do not continue to be left out and further behind. Community banks and credit unions are playing a vital role as we endure and eventually move past this pandemic. This bill reauthorizes the Transaction Account Guarantee (TAG) Program, a successful financial crisis era program established to maintain confidence in our nation's banking system, including minority depository institutions (MDIs), community banks, and credit unions. The bill gives the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) authority to guarantee that noninterest-bearing customer accounts, along with the debt owned by depository institutions is covered even beyond the current $250,000 limit. Fortunately, there are a few limited deregulatory proposals included in the bill. Deregulation is not the answer to this crisis. Congress will be overseeing the financial regulators in the weeks and months to come to ensure that they do not advance harmful rollbacks that will harm consumers during this time of national crisis. Financial regulators should focus all of their energy on the current crisis. They should immediately suspend any rulemaking or other efforts that have nothing to do with this crisis. The $500 billion Congress is authorizing for the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve to prudently extend emergency assistance directly and indirectly to corporations, non-profits, states, territories, and municipalities in this turbulent moment for our economy must be used to protect workers, families, and the national economy. These funds should not be used to line the pockets of corporate executives or arrange for a taxpayer-funded slush fund that enriches President Trump or his family. That is why this bill expressly prohibits the President, members of the President's Cabinet, and Members of Congress and their families from receiving any of these funds. The bill also expressly limits executive compensation and bonuses for corporations receiving assistance, and requires certain businesses receiving aid to uphold their collective bargaining agreements, maintain their workforce to at least 90 percent of what it was before the pandemic, and preserve worker pay and benefits. Furthermore, the bill prohibits companies receiving federal aid from engaging in stock buybacks and issuing dividends until taxpayers are fully paid back. However, the bill allows the Treasury Secretary to waive some of these conditions if the Secretary deems it in the federal government's interests. This waiver is overly broad and thus should only be used in only the most exceptional cases. The bill requires the Secretary to make himself available to testify before the House Financial Services Committee if he decides to exercise this waiver authority. Companies should not ask for waivers simply because they are available. It is the expectation of Congress that every business receiving government assistance fully complies with all of the aforementioned conditions. There is no reason that a business receiving taxpayer aid should focus on anything other than supporting and retaining its workforce. Furthermore, a business receiving taxpayer funds should not be engaging in stock buybacks or issuing dividends, and its CEO should go beyond the bill's conditions and restrain excessive compensation practices. Furthermore, the final bill includes a number of oversight and transparency measures to ensure the program is administered fairly and that the use of these emergency funds truly helps workers and all communities. Specifically, the bill requires public reporting of transactions in plain language on Treasury's website within 72 hours. The bill also requires weekly and monthly reports by Treasury to Congress summarizing new transactions and outstanding obligations. The Federal Reserve must, similar to reporting requirements for emergency lending mandated in the DoddFrank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, also submit weekly and monthly reports to Congress on any new facility they stand up as well as outstanding loans or financial assistance provided by the Fed. The Secretary of the Treasury and the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System will be required to testify before the House Financial Services Committee every single quarter regarding how the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve System are implementing the law. Moreover, the bill creates a Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery to combat waste, fraud and abuse and scrutinize every dollar spent in the administration of this $500 billion Treasury program. Therefore, the Secretary must prioritize the establishment of this Inspector General and have it open its doors as soon as possible. The Senate should confirm a qualified nominee for Inspector General quickly. Because the bill does not use an existing Inspector General, such as the Special Inspector General for TARP in H.R. 6379, there will be little executive branch oversight of these funds until the IG is up and running. Lastly, the bill creates a Congressional Oversight Commission, authorized to hold hearings, gather evidence, and publish monthly reports until 2025. The bill also authorizes the Government Accountability Office to provide an annual oversight report to Congress. Additionally, the bill creates a Pandemic Response Accountability Committee within the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency to ensure government-wide oversight through a number of Inspectors General to scrutinize the use of all Federal funds intended to address the coronavirus pandemic. Since taxpayers are footing the bill, all Americans deserve to examine any and all information related to the administration, disbursement and utilization of these funds. Therefore, I fully expect Treasury and the Federal Reserve to comply with the bill's transparency requirements and fully cooperate with these oversight entities, as well as the oversight conducted by Congress, including the Committee on Financial Services. Furthermore, I expect the oversight authorities established by the bill to immediately make Congress aware of any potential misuse of funds, conflicts of interest, or criminal or civil violations and refer any such matters, as appropriate, to the Department of Justice. I am pleased that this legislation includes important provisions that Democrats fought for to support individuals, families, workers, small business and communities, and support the bill's passage. But, the legislation is far from sufficient to fully support our nation through this crisis. And so, I will be voting ``yes'' on the bill, and urge my colleagues to immediately begin working on additional legislation to help American families to endure and overcome this pandemic.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Senate amendment to H.R. 748, now referred to as the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES Act. Congress must take action to provide relief and assistance to the millions of people across the Nation who are struggling in the midst of this national public health and economic emergency. With 3.3 million Americans filing for unemployment last week, 1 million Californians filing for unemployment in the last 2 weeks, and many families struggling to make ends meet, it is our duty as elected officials to step up and help them. Several weeks ago, as the chair of the Financial Services Committee, I led the Democratic members on the Financial Services Committee in devising a comprehensive plan to address the financial services aspects of the coronavirus crisis. I am pleased that today's bill includes some elements of this plan. The legislation before us takes important steps to protect and provide relief for consumers, renters, homeowners, and people experiencing homelessness. The bill will address the shortage of key medical supplies and equipment by providing a $1 billion appropriation to the Defense Production Act Fund. It will support small businesses and local, territory, and State governments and ensure that any Federal aid to corporations has conditions and independent oversight. The bill provides $4 billion to help combat the outbreak of this disease among the homeless community. Most importantly, building upon my proposal, most individuals and families across the country will receive a check or direct deposit for $1,200 for each adult and $500 for each child to help our families who are struggling during this unprecedented crisis. While I am pleased that the legislation includes these provisions that Democrats fought for, while I support the bill's passage, I must make it clear that the legislation is far from comprehensive and that there are issues that it leaves unaddressed and areas where it falls short. H.R. 748 does not prohibit negative credit reporting during the crisis, forgive student loan debt, or suspend all consumer credit payments, among other concerns. However, despite these shortcomings, this bill is the most consequential piece of legislation that many of us will ever vote on. The American people need help, and they need it now. This bill represents a down payment on that relief. I look forward to working with the Speaker, my committee colleagues, the Senate, and others on the next phase of relief. While it is clear that Congress must pass a fourth package to address these and other shortcomings, the passage of today's bill is critical for all families and communities.

Ms. WATERS

Ms. WATERS. Madam Speaker, I stand today with the chair of our Foreign Affairs Committee who just spoke here, Mr. Engel, as he makes a plea to this House for us to take a look at and get involved with what is going on in Syria. Millions of folks are dying. They are being killed with the help of Assad and Russia. They are killing civilians, millions of civilians. They are killing the children. And for those who are injured that find their way to the hospital, it does no good because they turn around and bomb the hospitals. This is an outrage. The United States of America cannot afford to turn a blind eye to this humanitarian crisis. We must get involved. We must pay attention. The families, the children, the people of Syria deserve better than this. I want to thank Mr. Engel for the attention that he is paying to this issue and the way that he is trying to educate us and get us involved in saving those poor people who are being overrun, who are being killed by Assad and, of course, with the help of Russia.

Ms. WATERS

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on H.R. 3621.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 3621, the Comprehensive Credit Reporting Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation, and Transparency Act, legislation sponsored by Representative Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts. This package of bills builds upon reforms that members of the Financial Services Committee have been developing for several Congresses. Mr. Chairman, credit reporting is unlike any other business. Consumers are not customers of credit reporting agencies; they are the product. Credit reporting agencies package up consumers' data to sell to lenders, employers, and other businesses. Unfortunately, our system of consumer credit reporting is badly broken, and consumers have little recourse. It is typical for credit reports to be filled with unacceptable errors that are difficult for consumers to correct. A Federal Trade Commission study found that one in five consumers have verified errors in their credit reports, and 1 in 20 consumers have errors so serious that they would be denied credit or need to pay more for it. This means about 42 million consumers have errors in their credit reports and 10 million have reports that can be life-altering. Consumers are frustrated with the current system. In 2018, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau received 126,300 consumer complaints on credit reporting, which was more than one-third of all complaints submitted. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau received more complaints about credit reporting than any other issue. This legislative package makes critical reforms to help consumers by addressing problems with the credit reporting system. The legislation includes H.R. 3642, the Improving Credit Reporting for All Consumers Act, a bill sponsored by Representative Alma Adams, which would address burdens consumers experience when trying to remove errors from their consumer reports, including by providing a new right to appeal the results of initial reviews about the accuracy or completeness of disputed items on the report. The package also includes H.R. 3622, the Restoring Unfairly Impaired Credit and Protecting Consumers Act, a bill sponsored by Representative Rashida Tlaib. This part of the bill would limit how long adverse credit information stays on consumer reports, and it would protect consumer victims by removing adverse information relating to predatory, discriminatory, or otherwise unlawful loans made by a financial institution. It would also prohibit reporting debt relating to medically necessary procedures and delay reporting by 1 year for other medical debt. In addition, the package includes H.R. 3614, the Restricting Use of Credit Checks for Employment Decisions Act, a bill sponsored by Representative Al Lawson. This part of the bill would prohibit employers from using credit reports for employment decisions, except when a credit report is otherwise required to conduct a background check by Federal, State, or local law or for a national security clearance. Then there is H.R. 3621, the Student Borrower Credit Improvement Act, a bill sponsored by Representative Pressley, which is also included in the legislation. This part of the bill would help student borrowers who may have been delinquent on paying their private student loans to repair their credit after they demonstrate a history of timely loan repayments for these loans, similar to how the credit reports of borrowers with Federal student loans can be rehabilitated. Another key measure included in this package is H.R. 3629, the Clarity in Credit Score Formation Act, sponsored by Representative Stephen Lynch. This legislation would direct the CFPB to provide oversight and set standards for validating the accuracy and predictive value of credit score models, and it would promote innovation by requiring a study on how the use of nontraditional data might impact the availability and affordability of credit for consumers with limited or no traditional credit histories. Finally, the package includes H.R. 3618, the Free Credit Scores for Consumers Act, sponsored by Representative Joyce Beatty, which would direct the nationwide CRAs to give consumers free copies of their credit scores that are used by creditors in making credit decisions, as determined by the CFPB, whenever consumers obtain their free annual consumer reports. I am pleased that this bill also includes a provision that I have worked on with a range of other Members that excludes from credit reports any adverse information about a Federal employee and others who are affected by a government shutdown. Mr. Chairman, I urge all Members to support these commonsense reforms to improve the Nation's consumer reporting system and benefit hardworking American consumers. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, this really should be a bipartisan bill, but my friends on the opposite side of the aisle have not been willing to really work in a bipartisan way. His bill was rejected in the Rules Committee because it was not germane. If he agrees with us on all of the items he identified, he should be supporting this bill. Mr. Chairman, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Pressley), who is a sponsor of this important legislation.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chair, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Beatty), who is the chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Diversity and Inclusion and a sponsor of legislation that is a part of this bill, H.R. 3621.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chair, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Adams), who is a sponsor of one of the bills in this comprehensive legislative package, H.R. 3621.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chair, our next speaker is a sponsor of one of the bills in H.R. 3621. She will have an opportunity to correct the ranking member, who indicated the bill would remove negative credit after 2 years. It does not. She will clear that up and make sure that he understands the facts of our bill. Mr. Chair, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Ms. Tlaib).

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch), who is chairman of the Task Force on Financial Technology, and a sponsor of H.R. 3629, one of the bills that is making up this package.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Massachusetts.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Lawson), who is the sponsor of H.R. 3614, one of the bills in this comprehensive package.

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney), who is the chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform.