[Senate Hearing 117-283]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 117-283
NOMINATIONS OF ARUN VENKATARAMAN AND
DAMON Y. SMITH
=======================================================================
HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON
BANKING,HOUSING,AND URBAN AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
ON
NOMINATIONS OF:
ARUN VENKATARAMAN, OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, TO BE ASSISTANT
SECRETARY OF COMMERCE AND DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES AND
FOREIGN COMMERCIAL SERVICE
__________
DAMON Y. SMITH, OF MARYLAND, TO BE GENERAL COUNSEL, DEPARTMENT OF
HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
__________
JULY 13, 2021
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available at: https: //www.govinfo.gov /
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
47-786 PDF WASHINGTON : 2022
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COMMITTEE ON BANKING, HOUSING, AND URBAN AFFAIRS
SHERROD BROWN, Ohio, Chairman
JACK REED, Rhode Island PATRICK J. TOOMEY, Pennsylvania
ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama
JON TESTER, Montana MIKE CRAPO, Idaho
MARK R. WARNER, Virginia TIM SCOTT, South Carolina
ELIZABETH WARREN, Massachusetts MIKE ROUNDS, South Dakota
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland THOM TILLIS, North Carolina
CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, Nevada JOHN KENNEDY, Louisiana
TINA SMITH, Minnesota BILL HAGERTY, Tennessee
KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona CYNTHIA LUMMIS, Wyoming
JON OSSOFF, Georgia JERRY MORAN, Kansas
RAPHAEL WARNOCK, Georgia KEVIN CRAMER, North Dakota
STEVE DAINES, Montana
Laura Swanson, Staff Director
Brad Grantz, Republican Staff Director
Elisha Tuku, Chief Counsel
Mohammad Aslami, Counsel
Dan Sullivan, Republican Chief Counsel
John Crews, Republican Policy Director
Cameron Ricker, Chief Clerk
Shelvin Simmons, IT Director
Charles J. Moffat, Hearing Clerk
(ii)
C O N T E N T S
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TUESDAY, JULY 13, 2021
Page
Opening statement of Chairman Brown.............................. 1
Prepared statement....................................... 21
Opening statements, comments, or prepared statements of:
Senator Toomey............................................... 2
Prepared statement....................................... 21
NOMINEES
Arun Venkataraman, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant
Secretary of Commerce and Director General of the United States
and Foreign Commercial Service................................. 4
Prepared statement........................................... 22
Biographical sketch of nominee............................... 24
Responses to written questions of:
Chairman Brown........................................... 46
Senator Toomey........................................... 47
Senator Daines........................................... 52
Damon Y. Smith, of Maryland, to be General Counsel, Department of
Housing and Urban Development.................................. 6
Prepared statement........................................... 34
Biographical sketch of nominee............................... 35
Responses to written questions of:
Chairman Brown........................................... 53
Senator Toomey........................................... 55
Senator Tillis........................................... 61
(iii)
NOMINATIONS OF ARUN VENKATARAMAN AND DAMON Y. SMITH
----------
TUESDAY, JULY 13, 2021
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met at 10:03 a.m., in room 538, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Sherrod Brown, Chairman of the
Committee, presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN SHERROD BROWN
Chairman Brown. The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing,
and Urban Affairs will come to order. Today, we will consider
two nominations for the Commerce Department's U.S. and Foreign
Commercial Service and the Department of Housing and Urban
Development.
The President's nominee to serve as Director General of the
U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service is Arun Venkataraman. For
over two decades, Mr. Venkataraman has worked on matters of
international trade both in the public and private sectors. He
currently serves as Counselor to the Secretary of Commerce,
advising the Department on trade and other international
economic matters. In the Obama-Biden administration he served
in the Commerce Department's International Trade
Administration.
He holds a J.D. from Columbia Law School, a Master of Arts
in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and
Diplomacy, and a B.A. from Tufts University.
The agency he has been nominated to lead exists to create
American opportunity abroad, because we assume it will grow
American jobs at home. But, in the past, too often it has meant
creating corporate opportunity abroad and loss of jobs,
especially union jobs, in places like my State and the Ranking
Member's home State.
We welcome you to the Committee. Thank you for joining us.
We will also consider the nomination of a key housing
expert today to join the senior leadership of HUD. Damon Smith,
the President's nominee to serve as General Counsel of Housing
and Urban Development, currently serves as a Senior Advisor to
Secretary Fudge.
Mr. Smith is the grandson of a Tuskegee Airman and we are
proud to claim him as Athens, Ohio's, own. In addition to his
wife, Janine, he is joined today by his parents, Bill and
Charlene, who still live in Athens and who worked and retired
from Ohio University. And I know that both of you will want to
introduce your family members when it is your time to speak.
Mr. Smith joined the Administration after serving as Senior
Director of Advocacy and Counsel at the Credit Union National
Association. He previously served as the Senior Counsel and
Acting General Counsel at HUD during the Obama administration,
providing legal and policy guidance, and setting the
Department's litigation strategy and regulatory agenda. Before
his Government service, he was a law professor at Rutgers and
at American Universities. He has also served as an urban
planner in East St. Louis, Illinois, and in St. Louis,
Missouri.
Mr. Smith is a graduate of Harvard Law School and holds a
bachelor's degree in English and a master's degree in urban
planning from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
I look forward to the testimony from both of you today.
Ranking Member Toomey.
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR PATRICK J. TOOMEY
Senator Toomey. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Venkataraman
and Mr. Smith, welcome to both of you and thank you for your
willingness to serve. I want to comment about your roles, but
briefly, let me just observe, we just recently saw the latest
Consumer Price Index numbers that came out at 8:30 this
morning. Quite high, surprisingly higher than expectations. The
core CPI for the 12 months ending just last month, June 21, is
the highest reading in almost 30 years, and at some point I
think we need to acknowledge that inflation is with us, and it
is more severe than most of us had expected, than most people
had expected, and the Fed has assured us that it is all
transitory, it is all going to go away. And I sure hope they
are right, but I remain concerned that they put themselves in a
position of being behind the curve if they are wrong, and it is
already clear that it is more severe than they had expected.
Having said that, the topic at hand are the nominees to two
very important leadership positions at the Commerce Department
and at HUD.
At Commerce, the Director General of the U.S. and Foreign
Commercial Service and Assistant Secretary for Global Markets
needs to stand up for the interests of U.S. exporters overseas.
And that includes addressing barriers to entry in foreign
markets and attracting foreign direct investment, which we call
FDI, into the U.S. There are a lot of U.S. businesses and jobs
that depend upon exports. And the position is critically
important right now as COVID-19 led to the imposition of new
trade barriers and a sharp decline in global FDI.
The Assistant Secretary will face a host of challenges
right off the bat. The previous Administration's trade wars
contributed to alienating a number of our allies. For instance,
many of them imposed retaliatory tariffs on U.S. exports after
Section 232 tariffs labeled their steel and aluminum exports a
``national security threat.''
``Buy American'' policies that seek to limit foreign access
to U.S. Government procurement contracts have caused our
trading partners to threaten or actually do the same, and that
potentially takes away a major export market for U.S.
businesses and employees and workers. Foreign countries also
frequently impose nontariff technical barriers to trade to
limit U.S. entry and protect their domestic industries. The
Assistant Secretary must oversee efforts to convince foreign
Governments to overcome these concerns, remove these obstacles,
and allow our businesses market access.
Another major responsibility of the Assistant Secretary is
to oversee U.S. Government efforts to attract foreign direct
investment into the United States. The U.S. has long been a
magnet for FDI, due to our combination of a skilled workforce,
deep, broad capital markets, strong legal protections for
investors, and, of course, the strongest economy in the world.
But FDI has faced challenges. In 2020, global foreign direct
investment fell 42 percent, according to U.N. Conference on
Trade and Development.
And I am concerned that the Biden administration is making
attracting foreign direct investment more difficult. The
Administration has proposed burdensome regulations and
corporate taxes that would make it less desirable to invest in
the United States. And the Administration's recent support for
a waiver of intellectual property protections for vaccines
sends a very disturbing signal to investors in any kind of
intellectual property-intensive industries.
So if confirmed, I hope you to use your position to promote
policies that will achieve the mission entrusted to you, and
that means giving a voice to U.S. exporters in the
Administration's policy decisions and advocating for policies
that make the U.S. an attractive destination for foreign direct
investment.
Now let me turn to HUD. The HUD's General Counsel plays a
really important role advising the agency on what it can and
cannot do. HUD needs a General Counsel who will help ensure
effective oversight of Federal tax dollars that HUD spends.
That includes rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse, and it is
critically important given the $60 billion given to HUD this
past year and the $68 billion requested for the next fiscal
year.
And unfortunately, HUD is already making poor choices on
this front. For example, the agency has made it easier for
illegal immigrants to get emergency housing vouchers by waiving
regulations that require verification of citizenship or legal
immigration status. In addition, HUD has removed sensible
restrictions on Puerto Rico's use of disaster recovery funds.
The General Counsel must ensure that HUD is complying with
the law, despite whatever political pressures may come to bear.
In other words, he cannot be a ``yes'' man.
In fact, the General Counsel needs to be willing to push
back on policies that are inconsistent with the law.
Unfortunately, we have seen HUD ignore certain laws recently.
For example, Congress has explicitly prevented any part of a
borrower's downpayment for an FHA loan from being financed by
an entity benefiting from the mortgage transaction. But, as I
noted in a recent letter to HUD, the agency continues to turn a
blind eye to circular funding schemes where FHA borrowers
finance their own downpayment assistance in contravention of
the law.
Second, the General Counsel needs to ensure that all legal
requirements with respect to rulemaking and guidance are
followed. That means meaningfully considering all input from
stakeholders, preparing all supporting materials to accompany
significant policy guidance, and completing regulatory impact
analyses which describe the economic burdens on stakeholders.
Third, the General Counsel needs to be readily available
and work with Congress to ensure laws are, in fact, faithfully
implemented, especially including Members of this Committee.
Let me close by saying, Mr. Venkataraman, I look forward to
hearing how you plan to effectively support U.S. exporters
overseas and attract foreign investment to the U.S. And Mr.
Smith, I look forward to hearing how you will ensure that HUD
faithfully complies with the law and conducts thorough
oversight of how it spends taxpayer dollars. If confirmed, you
both will have really important missions to fulfill.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Senator Toomey.
For administration of the oath, would Mr. Venkataraman and
Mr. Smith rise please. Raise your right hands.
Do you swear or affirm that the testimony you are about to
give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth,
so help you God?
Mr. Venkataraman. I do.
Mr. Smith. I do.
Chairman Brown. Do you agree to appear and testify before
any duly constituted Committee of the Senate?
Mr. Venkataraman. I do.
Mr. Smith. I do.
Chairman Brown. Thank you. You may take your seats.
Mr. Venkataraman, would you begin your testimony.
STATEMENT OF ARUN VENKATARAMAN, TO BE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF
COMMERCE AND DIRECTOR GENERAL
DESIGNATE, UNITED STATES AND FOREIGN COMMERCIAL SERVICE
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Senator. Chairman Brown,
Ranking Member Toomey, Members of the Committee, thank you for
the opportunity to appear before you today. I am honored to be
nominated by President Biden to be the Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Global Markets and the Director General of the
U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service. I want to thank Secretary
Raimondo for her support of my nomination. I also want to thank
the Committee for the opportunity to meet with members of your
staff this past week.
I feel the deepest sense of gratitude and humility in being
considered for this position. When my parents brought me to
this country 45 years ago, we could not appreciate that we were
part of a proud lineage of immigrants that came through New
York, like us, in search of better opportunities. And, my
parents certainly could never have imagined that those
opportunities would lead to my being here today to be
considered for this position by the Committee.
I remain grateful to my parents for making all this
possible because of their bold decision to move 8,000 miles
away from everything they ever knew to start a new life for us
here in America. Their support for everything that I do has
been unwavering, and I am glad to have them here today to share
this experience with me.
I have had the privilege of spending much of my career in
public service, working on a wide range of international trade
issues on behalf of the American people. I have negotiated with
some of our most challenging trading partners on issues like
subsidies and tech policy, and held them accountable to their
commitments under our trade agreements. I have collaborated
with foreign Governments to address shared challenges in third-
country markets. I have also helped defend the legitimate
policy tools we have to protect American companies and workers
from unfair State-backed competition from countries like China.
And in these and other areas, I have worked extensively across
the multiple agencies and with various stakeholders to build a
unified position for the Government.
From working and leading teams in highly matrixed
organizations, both in and out of Government, I fully
understand that no one of us has a monopoly on solutions to the
types of trade problems we are being called on to address at
this time in our history. We increasingly need to look beyond
our silos to bring to bear the right perspectives and knowledge
to any challenge. That is why I am committed to working
together with my colleagues across the Commerce Department and
across the Administration, and with Congress, and with all
stakeholders, to meet those challenges head-on.
In over 20 years working on international trade, my career
has allowed me to see how trade works from different vantage
points--from the judicial branch, from an international
organization, from the private sector, and from the public
sector. I believe that Global Markets is uniquely situated to
make trade work for American firms and their workers. This team
works with foreign Governments to make sure American firms get
the fair access they deserve to foreign markets. Global Markets
also helps small and medium-sized enterprises become new
exporters and take advantage of the commercial opportunities
created by trade agreements.
Finally, Global Markets leverages the inherent
attractiveness of the United States as an investment
destination to bring foreign companies to America and create
jobs. Through these core activities, Global Markets brings to
life the potential that trade and investment offer the American
people, and I am committed to seeing that mission through to
its fullest, if confirmed.
One last point I would note for the Committee. I fully
appreciate the privilege I would have if I were confirmed to
this position. I have had the fortune of working closely with
Global Markets through much of my Government career, most
recently as the International Trade Administration's Director
of Policy in the Obama administration. I know firsthand the
high caliber of staff and the deep commitment of the Global
Markets team to creating opportunities and bringing the
benefits of trade to the American people. If confirmed, I
commit to you to be worthy of leading this high-performing team
to do what it does best and drive the Administration's efforts
to strengthen precisely that connection between trade and the
American people.
Thank you again for this opportunity to be considered for
this position and to appear before you today. I look forward to
your questions.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Mr. Venkataraman. Mr. Smith, you
are recognized for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF DAMON Y. SMITH, TO BE GENERAL COUNSEL DESIGNATE,
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Mr. Smith. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Chairman Brown, Ranking
Member Toomey, and distinguished Members of the Committee, I am
honored and humbled to be before you today as the nominee for
General Counsel of the Department of Housing and Urban
Development.
I would like to first take this opportunity to thank
President Biden for this nomination and Secretary Fudge for her
leadership and support. I also want to thank my family,
especially my mother and father, who are here with me today.
The lessons that they have taught and the values that they
instilled in me are integral to who I am as a husband, a
father, a professional and a public servant.
Finally, I want to thank my wife, Janine, who is also here
with me. She served as a staffer here in the U.S. Senate and
has passed along her great respect for this august institution.
She has been a true partner and a blessing to me, our three
children, and our entire family.
HUD's Office of General Counsel is a special place to me,
filled as it is with able attorneys, analysts, and support
staff of the highest caliber. I have had the pleasure of
working with them and leading them in the past, in different
capacities, but if confirmed, it would be a distinct honor to
do so and work with them and all the incredible employees of
HUD as their General Counsel.
There are several reasons why I find myself here today, and
I would like to share just a few of them with you. My first
lessons in housing and community came from my grandmother, who
passed away this past March, just shy of her 100th birthday.
She did not own a car, and she did not have much money, so she
used to walk everywhere, often for many miles and often in high
heels if headed to work. In the summers I got to tag along with
her and regaled in the stories that she would tell me about the
places that we were going and the people that we were seeing
along the way. Everyone seemed to love her. They all waved and
communicated with her in ways that were indicating to me that
we were in a safe, friendly neighborhood, no matter where we
were. I certainly recognize that although she did not have much
in the way of formal education, she taught me quite a bit,
invaluable lessons about the importance of safe and supportive
communities.
My first lessons in public service probably came from my
father and grandfather, who both served ably in the military.
My father, who I just introduced moments ago, and my
grandfather, Brigadier General Charles McGee, who you, Mr.
Chairman, mentioned during my introductions. He started his
career as a Tuskegee Airman, flew combat missions in three
wars, served his country with great distinction, and certainly
I learned valuable lessons from him and my father, and other
role models who served honorably, dedicating their lives, for
them even after their military service was over, to empowering
succeeding generations. They taught me that serving others in
whatever way we can is incredibly rewarding and one of life's
highest callings.
Those lessons were taught to me as I grew up, as you
mentioned, Mr. Chairman, in Athens, Ohio, a small college town
in southeastern Ohio, not too far from the West Virginia
border. I recognized there the face of rural poverty and the
impact that affordable housing, including manufactured housing,
can have on keeping a community sustained. My career as a
planner began in East St. Louis, Illinois, where I worked on
development and housing issues in an urban setting.
The through line in my diverse experiences is a fundamental
belief in our ability to improve communities, provide
opportunity, and create better housing and development outcomes
for everyone.
As a student and in my career as a planner and academic, I
collaborated with low-income residents on housing and community
development issues and learned incredibly valuable lessons in
perspective and perseverance. As an attorney in private
practice, I have worked on real estate and regulatory
compliance issues with developers, building owners, and
financial institutions, and I learned about the importance of
clear guidelines, ethical leadership, and building and
rewarding a culture of compliance. And as a public servant at
the State and Federal levels, I have provided advice and
counsel to policymakers and attorneys at all levels of
Government, learning how to work collaboratively and manage
people effectively to achieve better outcomes.
All these experiences have increased my knowledge and
appreciation of the work done by a myriad of stakeholders to
ensure that we can create strong, sustainable, inclusive
communities and quality affordable homes for all. If confirmed,
I will use the knowledge gleaned from these experiences to
ensure the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, and their staffs are
provided with timely and helpful counsel. And I will work hard
to ensure that the Office of General Counsel and the entire
Department operate effectively, efficiently, and ethically in
delivering on our critical mission to the American people.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today. I look
forward to your questions.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Mr. Smith.
Mr. Venkataraman, I imagine you have seen the most recent
findings from the International Trade Commission, telling us
what the Ohioans I have talked to have known all long. In
almost four decades of trade agreements under trade promotion
authority we have seen barely any job creation in service
sector jobs while hollowing out our manufacturing industries.
We just had two deputy USTR nominees before the Finance
Committee--three of us in that room sit on that Committee--who
have acknowledged our country's terrible track record of
understanding the effects of trade policy on American workers.
In the past, the job for which you have been nominated has
been all about promoting American companies to the world, even
at the expense of American workers. This Administration surely
has a different view, and my question is what will you do to
promote American workers and ensure that they are at the
absolute center of American trade policy?
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The first thing
I would say is that when I think about Global Markets, workers
are very much at the center of the mission. And why do I say
that? That is because, first and foremost, the companies that
Global Markets exist to support are the small and medium-sized
businesses that employ many of the workers that you are talking
about. So I want to work with those companies to ensure that
they have the opportunities that all the big companies have all
the time already. How can we make sure that the smallest of our
companies, that the most vulnerable, have access to those
opportunities so that they can produce the jobs at home and
create employment opportunities for all people in the economy.
Second, I think it is important to note that when we
advocate for policy changes in foreign Government we need to
keep workers front of mind. And so what does that mean? In my
view, that means not just advocating because companies benefit,
but really understanding the impact some of these foreign
Government policies have on the workers. And what does that
mean? That means trying to understand how some of these foreign
Government policies create unlevel playing fields that force
companies to lay off workers here in the United States, and
where the workers bear the brunt of those foreign Government
policies.
So understanding the impact of those foreign Government
policies will be critical to understanding which foreign
policies we really need to address in our dialogs with foreign
Governments. Thank you.
Chairman Brown. Thank you. Mr. Smith, the General Counsel's
Office plays an important role in making sure that all
landlords live up to their obligations to provide the assisted
families with a safe home. What role will you play in
addressing existing problems that put residents at risk, and
what will you do to ensure that maintenance problems are
addressed before residents are, in fact, at risk?
Mr. Smith. Thank you for that question, Mr. Chairman. I
certainly recognize that one of the major roles that OGC plays
within the Department is to make sure that FHA, Public and
Indian Housing, and our other program offices are provided with
the correct amount and efficient, effective legal advice that
they need in order to oversee a number of these programs.
We also have program enforcement attorneys in the
Departmental Enforcement Center that is under the Office of
General Counsel that plays a critical role in holding
accountable, as Ranking Member Toomey said, those who might try
to commit waste, fraud, and abuse.
As it relates to the obligations that these landlords have
to their residents, making sure that they abide by HUD's rules
and regulations is an absolutely important part of what the
Office of General Counsel is about, and I look forward to
working with our Secretary and our FHA Commissioner, when that
person is confirmed, to be able to make sure that we are making
certain that they are abiding by their requirements.
Chairman Brown. Thank you. Mr. Smith, more than two million
homeowners are still in forbearance. Many more will be exiting
that forbearance in the coming months. How will you work with
FHA staff to ensure that no family experiences avoidable
foreclosure?
Mr. Smith. Thank you again for that question, Mr. Chairman.
As you are aware, the FHA has a very robust waterfall of
requirements that are necessary to prevent foreclosures from
occurring. Not only are they disruptive to the families and the
communities where those foreclosures take place, but they have
a significant cost to the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund. So we
have very robust requirements that servicers must follow prior
to a foreclosure, and a number of methods to avoid it. And we
will make sure that certainly they are abiding by those
requirements, whenever possible, to make certain that people
are given the opportunity to stay in their homes, and were
given the opportunity to avoid additional costs to the fund.
Chairman Brown. Thank you. Senator Toomey.
Senator Toomey. Thanks, Mr. Chairman. I will just start by
pointing out that despite the occasional protectionist leaning
of the previous Administrations, I think it is fair to say that
prior to, say, the COVID pandemic hitting us, we were living in
one of the freest trading, global trading environments in the
last 100 years, and in that context we had achieved full
employment, record low unemployment, very strong economic
growth, and accelerating wage gains, accelerating most rapidly
for the lowest-income workers, which suggests that terrific
circumstances for workers is very much consistent with
expanding trade.
Mr. Venkataraman--and I hope I am pronouncing that
approximately correctly there--one of the things the previous
Administration did is it imposed Section 232 tariffs on steel
and aluminum imports, including from some of America's closest
allies and best friends and nearest neighbors, and in response
there was retaliation by these countries against American
exports.
Now I fully acknowledge that in your role you will not have
responsibility for deciding what happens with 232 tariffs, but
I am wondering if you could comment on any observations you
have about how the retaliation against those tariffs has
affected American exporters.
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Senator Toomey. Absolutely. We
have been meeting, at the Commerce Department, with a number of
industries on the downstream side and others that are affected
by the tariffs, and particularly the retaliatory tariffs that
have been imposed, including by some of our allies, as you
note. The Administration takes those concerns absolutely
seriously and is committed to not only ensuring the long-term
viability of our steel and aluminum industries, who are in this
position through no fault of their own but because of a global
excess capacity problem. But the Administration is equally
committed to ensuring that industries do not bear the brunt of
unfair retaliatory tariffs, and so we have begun, as you know,
Senator, working with the European Union to figure out how to
address the underlying problem of global excess capacity while
encouraging them to remove those retaliatory tariffs.
Senator Toomey. Yeah. I think the imposition of the 232
tariffs really were not motivated by an excess capacity issue.
I acknowledge the excess capacity issue but I think that was a
separate matter. But I appreciate your answer.
Mr. Smith, As you know, Congress has a very important role
in conducting oversight of HUD, and so I want to ask, if
confirmed, will you commit to working with Members of this
Committee to answer our questions about HUD's compliance with
the law?
Mr. Smith. Yes, Ranking Member Toomey, I do.
Senator Toomey. Great. So I should point out, I have an
outstanding request to HUD, and to specifically the inspector
general at HUD, for records about HUD's compliance with the law
regarding downpayment assistance. HUD's IG has been providing
records, and I appreciate that they have been working with my
staff to work out a schedule by which we will get the documents
we need. I would just like to ask, if you are confirmed, if you
will commit to facilitating, to the extent it is appropriate
and necessary, this ongoing response to my requests.
Mr. Smith. Yes, Ranking Member Toomey, I can commit to
working with your office constructively to make sure that you
are provided with the information you are requesting.
Senator Toomey. Great. Thank you. The Biden administration,
as I am sure you know, repealed the Trump-era AFFH rule. It is
my understanding that HUD intends to issue a new AFFH rule to
amend the Obama-era rule. This all gets a little bit confusing,
but here is my concern. The Obama-era rule was enormously
onerous, and required consultants to figure out how to even
comply with these questionnaires that delved into areas that
had nothing to do with housing, had nothing to do with even
their own geography in some places. Even the now HUD Deputy
Secretary but previous CEO of NAHRO advocated for a less-
burdensome rule.
So my question is, in the development of this rule--and I
know that you will not unilaterally write this rule, but you
would be an influential voice in the process of its
development--I hope we end up in a place where municipalities
do not have to hire consultants just to comply with a Federal
rulemaking in this regard, and they do not have to complete
analyses that have to do with issues completely outside of the
geography of their own municipality. Do you have any thoughts
on the complexity of that rule?
Mr. Smith. Thank you for the question, Ranking Member
Toomey. I do want to say that because we are going to be
engaging in notice and comment rulemaking on that issue I do
not want to opine on where we ultimately will end. But I do
recognize that the Deputy Secretary, and I believe the
Administration, in several announcements associated with their
recent pronouncements on AFFH, have acknowledged some of those
concerns that you have described. We look forward to hearing
about those in the comment period and certainly would look
forward to the opportunity to address those concerns through
that notice and comment rulemaking.
Senator Toomey. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just
hope we could agree that a sensible rule would probably not
require highly paid outside consultants to fill out a
questionnaire, but a thoughtful, sensible, competent person
with that responsibility for a given municipality ought to be
able to do it. Thank you.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Senator Toomey. Senator Warren
from Massachusetts is recognized.
Senator Warren. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. So Congress is
preparing to make historic investments in our housing
infrastructure. We have only one source of housing guaranteed
to be affordable year after year for low-income families, and
that is public housing. But because Congress has failed, year
after year, to provide sufficient funding, we are losing an
estimated 10,000 units of public housing every year, just to
deterioration and disrepair.
That is why my bill, with Representative Velazquez, the
Public Housing Emergency Response Act, calls for $70 billion
for the Public Housing Find to wipe out this repair backlog and
bring our public housing into good repair. But when we invest
in public housing, there is actually another benefit. Under
Federal law, when taxpayer dollars are invested in public
housing construction and repair, some portion of that money
must be spent in ways that provide jobs for public housing
residents. That law, called Section 3, leverages every public
housing dollar into economic opportunities for low-income
families.
Mr. Smith, if confirmed, you would serve as one of the top
lawyers at the Department of Housing and Urban Development,
which administers public housing funding. Let me just ask you,
do you believe that Section 3 is beneficial for families living
in public housing?
Mr. Smith. Thank you for that question, Senator. If
confirmed, I would certainly look forward to the opportunity to
work with our Fair Housing Equal Opportunity Office that
administers Section 3 to make sure that we are providing those
opportunities that are required under that law, to be sure
that, whenever possible, public housing residents can benefit
from the funding that goes to public housing agencies.
Senator Warren. Well, you know, I appreciate that. Despite
the promise of Section 3, its mandate has been chronically
unmet and underenforced. So just look at what happened after
the last financial crisis. Congress invested $4 billion in
public housing, helping to build more than 1,600 new housing
units and tens of thousands additional energy-efficient units.
But the HUD inspector general found that HUD did not enforce
Section 3 requirements. And what that meant is that families
living in public housing missed out on good jobs that could
have helped them recover from the crash.
President Biden has now called for an investment in public
housing that is ten times bigger than what the Federal
Government did after the financial crash. So let me ask it this
way, Mr. Smith. If confirmed, will you review and evaluate
HUD's Section 3 enforcement practices to ensure that low-income
residents have access to the jobs that they have been promised
by Federal law?
Mr. Smith. Thank you, Senator, for the opportunity to
address the question in that manner as well. I certainly can
confirm that if I have the opportunity to serve as General
Counsel at HUD we will conduct such a review to make sure that
we are abiding by the law and that the public housing agencies
that we work with are as well.
Senator Warren. Well, enforcement matters, and I look
forward to following up with your office on that.
Enforcement is a critical tool, but it is only as good as
the underlying rules. We need to make sure that Section 3 is
set up in a way that makes it easier to deliver jobs and harder
to evade. So, Mr. Smith, let me just ask you. How can HUD
strengthen Section 3?
Mr. Smith. Senator Warren, I believe that certainly there
are a number of opportunities that HUD should have to
strengthen Section 3. One, as you described, is to conduct a
review to make sure that under our existing rules in the
known----
Senator Warren. Right. But I am asking about improving the
rules.
Mr. Smith. I certainly think that we can, in conjunction
with the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary for FHEO, devise
a more effective way to deliver Section 3 benefits as required.
Senator Warren. Can you put a little more meat on the bone
on that, about what you have in mind? Give me some ideas about
what you would do to strengthen it.
Mr. Smith. Senator Warren, I do not want to get ahead of
certainly my policymakers at the agency in terms of some things
that we can do, but within my purview, you mentioned one of
them when you talked about enforcement, and making sure that we
let program recipients, funding recipients know what
expectations are very clearly and that we provide technical
assistance to make sure that they understand how they can
comply.
Senator Warren. Well, I appreciate it. Enforcement is
obviously very important, but we need better underlying rules
too. You know, Section 3 is a win-win for housing investments.
It helps us address the affordable housing crisis and it helps
us create good jobs for people who need them. It would bolster
the recovery and help produce lasting benefits for public
housing residents. But we have to meet that mandate. It is not
enough just to have it on the books.
So I look forward to working with you during this public
housing crisis and doing all we can to end it. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Senator Warren. Senator Cortez
Masto from Nevada is recognized.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Gentlemen,
welcome. Congratulations on your nominations. Welcome to your
family members as well. I am looking at your parents right now.
The fathers have not smiled yet, but I assume they will when
this process is over, and you are doing very well.
So let me just start, Mr. Venkataraman. Let me start with
you. Senator Toomey talked a little bit about Section 232
tariffs. I also sit on Senate Finance. I will tell you I have
raised this issue with the USTR. I am hearing from many of my
businesses in my home State of Nevada about the impact of these
tariffs.
And so let me just, because of your background, and I think
it is an important role now that you are going to have in
Commerce, let me ask you this. What do you see as the path
forward for Section 232 tariffs, and how can you work with them
now in your new role with the USTR to ensure a process for
relief?
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Senator Cortez Masto. So in
the role that I hope to be confirmed for, there is a unique
opportunity to work with our trading partners. As Senator
Toomey noted, a number of our trading partners have raised
concerns about the application of Section 232 tariffs. The
position that I hope to be confirmed for affords me an
opportunity to engage those countries and work with my
colleagues across the Commerce Department and with USTR to
ensure that we are hearing those concerns and finding paths
forward that both ensure the long-term viability of our steel
and aluminum industries while mitigating the concerns for the
sectors that you have talked about, in terms of the concerns
you have heard from your industries.
Senator Cortez Masto. And I know you cannot put a timeframe
on it, but what would you give to me to tell my businesses, who
are really paying attention to this and being harmed because of
it?
Mr. Venkataraman. Sure. Senator, I would encourage you to
let your businesses know that we are hearing them and we
welcome continuing hearing from them about those concerns,
because the more we understand those concerns, the more
granularly we understand those concerns, the better we are in a
position to be responsive. And having heard those concerns,
those concerns are very much front of mind as we chart our path
forward. And so we are hearing them and we are working to
address those concerns as best we can.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you. I appreciate that. Mr.
Smith, in fiscal year 2020 appropriations it included a
requirement that HUD issue guidance for the inclusion of
manufactured housing in States' and local governments'
consolidated plans. I, along with my colleague, sent letter to
then-HUD Secretary Carson and Secretary Fudge, urging them to
issue guidance that would allow for manufactured housing to be
considered in consolidated plans.
As of today, this rulemaking has still not been
implemented. So my question to you is, if confirmed, what steps
would you take to ensure that HUD follows through on this
rulemaking, to make sure the 20 million people who live in
manufactured homes are considered in housing plans?
Mr. Smith. Thank you for that question, Senator Cortez
Masto. I certainly can tell you that, if confirmed, I would
work very closely with our FHA Commissioner and our
manufacturing housing offices to make sure that we are
complying not only with the legal requirements but that we are
doing what we can to address the affordable housing crisis that
we have by providing that type of regulatory framework for
manufactured housing, where necessary, and where that would be
effective and helpful in making sure that that gets to people
who need it.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you. Let me talk a little bit
about Tribal housing. I appreciate this Committee and many of
my colleagues for their focus on Tribal housing and improving
affordable rental housing and home ownership opportunities for
Native American communities. This is something I focus on, as
well as with some of my colleagues, on the Indian Affairs
Committee as well.
If confirmed, how would you use your role to support Tribal
housing?
Mr. Smith. Again, thank you for that question, Senator. I
had the opportunity, in this Administration, to sit in on a
Tribal consultation on issues of Tribal housing, and to say
that it was eye-opening is probably to do too little to really
describe how these Tribal leaders and housing leaders in Tribal
communities were able to articulate some of the many different
concerns that they have. Certainly this Administration has
agreed to engage in meaningful consultations on these issues,
and will continue to do so.
The Office of General Counsel plays a critical role in
that, as we support our Office of Public and Indian Housing and
their efforts to provide housing assistance to Tribes. And
certainly we will look forward to the opportunity to be able to
engage more heavily in that than I have in the past. It is not
an issue that I was engaged in, in my previous service, but one
that I recognize is a critical path to what we are trying to
achieve today.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you, and I would invite you to
really engage with our Tribal communities across the country,
in consultation, and to really focus on this issue as well. I
would probably think it would be the first conversation they
would have with anybody from HUD on this particular issue, so I
look forward to that as well.
Again, thank you for your willingness to serve, and
congratulations.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Senator Cortez Masto. A number
of other Senators, we think, are on their way here. I have one
question in the meantime. I think Senator Daines is trying to
come back, and Senators Ossoff and Van Hollen. But let me do
one more question, and certainly Senator Toomey is free to do
what he wants to do too.
Mr. Venkataraman, as you know, American small businesses
are operating in markets where foreign companies often try to
circumvent our trade laws. Our bipartisan bill with Senator
Portman, the other Ohio Senator, and a number of us, have
worked on, Leveling the Playing Field 2.0, it would give
Commerce new tools to go after trade cheats in more effective
ways. Please describe for us briefly, if you would, what steps
you intend to take to help ensure American small and medium-
sized businesses and minority-owned business, from places like
Canton, Ohio, or Scranton, Pennsylvania, can compete on a more
level playing field?
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Senator. Well, in my position
that I hope to confirmed for, as Assistant Secretary for Global
Markets, my focus would be on helping ensure that level playing
field, in terms of opportunities those businesses can face in
reaching foreign markets. I would welcome the opportunity, if
confirmed, to work with my colleagues across the Commerce
Department, including in our Enforcement and Compliance
Division, to ensure that small businesses around the country
are aware of the opportunities and the tools that are available
to them, and to make those tools accessible to them so that
they can ensure the level playing field in the sectors in which
they operate.
Chairman Brown. Thank you. Senator Ossoff from Georgia is
recognized for 5 minutes.
Senator Ossoff. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for
convening this hearing, and Ranking Member as well. Mr.
Venkataraman, I would like to discuss with you the future of
America's solar manufacturing sector, a particular interest to
the State of Georgia. As the clean energy sector continues to
grow and the transition from fossil fuel combustion to
renewable energy necessarily accelerates to address climate
change, the United States and the State of Georgia have a
tremendous opportunity, economically. In Georgia alone, there
are already 50 solar manufacturers, including the Q CELLS plant
in Dalton, Georgia, which is little known and yet is the
largest solar factory in the Western Hemisphere.
So my question for you, Mr. Venkataraman, is should you be
confirmed in this role, in order to ensure that workers in
places across my State, in cities and towns like Covington and
Mansfield, Griffin, LaGrange, and Dalton can participate in
this growing clean energy sector, will you commit to taking
strong action to expand access to export markets for U.S. solar
manufacturers such as ours in Georgia?
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Senator. If confirmed, I would
indeed be able to commit to ensuring that we fight for markets
for our solar exporters.
Senator Ossoff. Thank you. I appreciate the answer. Mr.
Chairman.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Senator Ossoff. Senator Van
Hollen from Maryland is recognized for 5 minutes.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member
Toomey, and congratulations to both of you on your nominations.
Mr. Venkataraman, let me start by asking you a question
about tools available to you, if confirmed, to help boost U.S.
trade with Africa. I chair the Africa Subcommittee on the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Administrations, both
Republicans and Democrats, have said they want to increase that
investment. And yet, despite those efforts, if you look at the
year 2019, the most recent year I have data for anyway, Africa
accounted for only 1.4 percent of U.S. global trade, and
received 0.7 percent of U.S. foreign direct investment.
It seems we can do a lot better, given the fact that the
younger population in Africa is one of the fastest growing in
the world. There are many economic opportunities for Africans
and for trade with Africa. How would you use your office, if
confirmed, to improve on the numbers from the past and really
boost our economic engagement with Africa?
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Senator Van Hollen. If
confirmed, I would certainly welcome the opportunity to use the
tools we have in global markets to significantly advance our
trade investment with Africa. I agree with you that the
demographics and the opportunities in Africa are too great to
ignore, and I think that there are a number of American sectors
that would contribute, not just in terms of exports but to the
growth and development across the continent. I would welcome
the opportunity, if confirmed, to use the tools we have at
Global Markets, including through our Foreign Commercial
Service Officers that are stationed throughout Africa, as well
as working closely with agencies like the Development Finance
Corporation, the EXIM Bank, and the State Department and USTR
to ensure that we develop a more robust plan to engage Africa
and to contribute to Africa's growth and development for the
long term.
Senator Van Hollen. Well, thank you. I appreciate you
mentioning those other agencies, because I think this does
really require teamwork, and everybody around one table. I was
pleased that Secretary Blinken joined an earlier discussion
with the International Finance Development Corporation, and
that is one of many tools. Congress recently passed legislation
to improve our competitiveness that increased the overall
authorization for that to $100 billion. So I hope you will have
a close working relationship with them.
Just picking up on Senator Ossoff's question, but not
limiting it simply to clean energy, which I think is a critical
sector, but, you know, one of the concerns that the Office for
Commercial Services has sort of overlooked the small business
community in the United States. What can you do to change that?
Mr. Venkataraman. Senator, I can commit to you that if
confirmed, indeed one of my priorities is to expand and double
down on the work the Global Markets team and the Foreign
Commercial Service and the Domestic Commercial Service is doing
with small companies. I think those small companies are the key
to long-term economic success for our country, and they are the
ones that are the most in need of, and should be benefiting
from the unique Government services that Global Markets has to
offer.
Senator Van Hollen. I appreciate that, because as you say,
as you are suggesting, you know, large companies have the
capacity to do much of this, sometimes with the assistance of,
you know, this office, and sometimes they can do it on their
own. But those smaller businesses really do depend on it.
Mr. Smith, close here to Washington, DC, you are in Prince
George's County in the State of Maryland, one of the most
affluent African American counties in the country. I was just
talking with the Prince George's County Association of Realtors
recently, and a number of them expressed concern with what they
perceive as to be unfair appraisals for their homes. And this
has been a theme that I have heard, not just in Prince George's
County but other parts of the State and the country. Can you
speak to that, and what you could do to bring to that problem,
if confirmed?
Mr. Smith. Thank you for that question, Senator. As you are
aware, the Administration has announced an effort to look into
appraisal bias, in particular, and we are working with
Department of Justice and many other agencies to make sure that
as a whole-of-Government response there is an ability for this
Administration to be able to understand that bias and to be
able to take steps to address it.
Certainly our work, ensuring that appraisers, among other
participants in the real estate market, abide by the Fair
Housing Act and its requirements and restrictions will be a
major component in that, and if confirmed, I look forward to
working on that issue.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Senator Van Hollen. I will ask
one more question, and Senator Menendez, I believe, is on his
way. Mr. Venkataraman, you will be managing a broad portfolio
of export promotion efforts to encourage foreign investments in
the U.S. at the ITA and Commerce, working with hundreds of
Commerce employees and U.S. Foreign Service Officers in
embassies all over the world to promote U.S. products and
services and jobs. Should you be confirmed, what do you see as
the major challenges facing you in this role, and what will be
your priorities and strategy in addressing these challenges?
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have had an
opportunity to touch on some of these, and I am happy to
explain further what I think my priorities would be, if I were
confirmed to this position.
I think first and foremost, as Senator Van Hollen
highlighted, the critical role that small businesses play, and
the critical needs they have, they have always had, but
particularly as we emerge from this pandemic, small businesses
have been the ones that have been devastated in ways that are
quite different from other corporations. And we need to help
those small businesses recover, and being able to provide them
access to foreign markets is one critical way of doing that.
Giving them access to foreign markets is really expanding their
customer base. And so giving them access to those new customers
is a key area that I want to focus on. I am fortunate that our
Global Markets team already focuses on small businesses, with
over 85 percent of our clients being small businesses today.
But what I am interested in doing are a couple of things.
One, taking the small businesses that are already our clients
and encouraging them and helping them find ways to export to
new markets that they are not reaching yet. Two, trying to find
ways to expand the small business space that use these
Government services. So how can we get new small businesses?
There are a number of small businesses that are highly
competitive in this country, but they should be accessing
foreign markets and getting access to those customers. How can
we help them do that?
Part and parcel of that is also bringing in new small
businesses from communities that may not have always used our
services before. These underserved communities that may not
have access to the same opportunities. How do we make sure they
recognize that these Government services are not just available
to them, but how do we make sure that they actually avail
themselves of those services so that they can achieve the same
benefits that other small businesses achieve when they use our
services to achieve export markets? So that is the first thing
I would mention.
The second thing I would mention is as we enter these
export markets, we are not just competing with the companies
from those export markets. We are competing against Chinese
companies, European companies, Korean companies, in those
markets. How could we improve our competitiveness vis-a-vis
those third-country competitors, so that we are the most
competitive in each of the markets where we operate? So
understanding those competitive conditions will be another
focus of mine.
And the last thing I would mention is I think as we develop
our dialogs with foreign Governments, we need to make sure that
the engagement we have with foreign Governments actually
reflects our domestic competitiveness concerns. The President
has laid out an ambitious agenda for how to achieve
competitiveness and how to strengthen the American economy,
including strengthening critical industries and focusing on
building resilient and secure supply chains. How do we ensure
that our dialogs with foreign Governments reflect those same
priorities so that our engagement with foreign Governments is
part and parcel of what we are doing domestically to strengthen
the American economy over the long term.
Chairman Brown. Thank you. My memory--and I had not thought
about this for a while--was early in my time in the House, a
number of years ago, we had worked on something called the U.S.
Export Assistance Center. It was a collection of various
agencies located in cities around the U.S. that worked, I
believe, under the aegis of the Commerce Department. Again,
pardon my ignorance on this. Does that still exist in some form
within your jurisdiction, or do you know that?
Mr. Venkataraman. Yes, Senator. Under the Global Markets
banner our domestic commercial services has U.S. Export
Assistance Centers in 48 States, in 116 cities around the
country.
Chairman Brown. And give me your assessment of their
effectiveness, in the last minute or so.
Mr. Venkataraman. Sure. So they have been incredibly
effective at helping small businesses identify export
opportunities and help small businesses incorporate export
plans into their business plans, and by really performing those
basic services of connecting them, not just in terms of
building their business but really connecting them with our
Foreign Commercial Service, located on the ground overseas, to
customers overseas. So we provide services on the domestic side
but combined with the services on the foreign side to help the
front to back of the entire sales chain.
Chairman Brown. And the U.S. Export Assistance Centers'
focus has been small and medium-sized businesses in the U.S.,
correct?
Mr. Venkataraman. Yes, sir.
Chairman Brown. OK. Thank you. Senator Menendez from New
Jersey is recognized.
Senator Menendez. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr.
Venkataraman--is that the correct pronunciation?
Mr. Venkataraman. Venkataraman, yes, sir.
Senator Menendez. Venkataraman. OK. I have always supported
the Foreign Commercial Service in its mission. In my other role
as the Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee I see
this as an incredibly important part of our advocacy abroad. I
think the office's work is critical to U.S. exporters who
struggle to navigate complex foreign markets and need advocates
on the ground to help them succeed. Other countries do this in
a much more significant, and I think effective, way. So I was
disheartened to see the last Administration propose to slash
the Foreign Commercial Services funding.
So can you commit to me that if you are confirmed you work
to strengthen the office and ensure the staff has adequate
resources to support U.S. exporters, in terms of your advocacy
internally?
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Senator Menendez, and thank
you for your longstanding support of the Commercial Service,
and indeed, I can commit to you that I will work tirelessly to
ensure that the Commercial Service is adequately funded to meet
its growing demand.
Senator Menendez. Now building stronger economic ties with
our neighbors in Latin America has always been a priority of
mine. This is our own hemisphere, our own front yard, a
tremendous opportunity, and it is more than economics. It is
also creating stability and close relationships that inure to
our national interests and security. The region presents a
tremendous opportunity for the U.S. to develop export markets
to foreign partnerships to boost our nation's competitiveness
and to compete in the global with China. China is all over the
Western Hemisphere.
If confirmed, what specific steps will you take to
prioritize strengthening our relationships with partners in
Latin America?
Mr. Venkataraman. Thank you, Senator, and indeed, Latin
America and South America are critical areas for us. As you
point out, there are, in fact, our neighbors. They should be
the first areas of go-to for many of our exporters. I would
work very closely with the State Department, and particularly
with agencies like the EXIM Bank, to ensure that we are able to
avail ourselves of the opportunities presented in those
markets. I would also work with our foreign Government
counterparts to ensure that they maintain transparent
procurement practices and that they impose the rise conditions
in those marketplaces to facilitate the kind of two-way trade
and investment that strengthens our connections with these
countries and contributes to their long-term growth and
development.
Senator Menendez. Thank you. Mr. Smith, it almost 4 years
since Puerto Rico suffered twin disasters of catastrophic
proportions, Hurricane Maria and the Trump administration's
derision of the people of Puerto Rico after they suffered a
natural disaster. Throwing out paper towels is not my idea of
how you help American citizens. Puerto Ricans are American
citizens of the United States, 3.5 million of them, who happen
to call the island their home, are citizens of the United
States.
According to HUD inspector general report, the Trump
administration successfully delayed and stonewalled Puerto
Rico's disaster funding by setting unprecedented--
unprecedented--procedural hurdles. I would like to ensure no
future Administration can so cruelly deny American citizens the
disaster relief they need and that Congress provided them.
So the HUD IG laid out several legal concerns HUD had with
OMB's requirements for Puerto Rico's disaster funds. Some of
these concerns include, but are not limited to, Tenth Amendment
issues and concerns over possible violations of the Impoundment
Control Act. Furthermore, former Deputy Secretary Montgomery of
HUD Stated that he was not sure that the OMB requirements were,
quote, ``even legal.''
Mr. Smith, what role does the General Counsel play when HUD
receives a request from OMB that HUD feels is legally
questionable?
Mr. Smith. Thank you for that question, Senator. As I think
that report pointed out, certainly the Office of General
Counsel played a role, and does play a role, in helping the
Administration and helping the leadership at HUD respond to
those types of requests, and to push back, where necessary, to
make sure that HUD's voice is being heard and that our
requirements are being met. Certainly I know that that report
also suggested that HUD consider rulemaking that would help in
making sure that that understanding of what is being done is in
accord with HUD's requirements.
And so certainly something that I would look forward to
having discussions with the Secretary and the head of our
Office of Community Planning and Development about going
forward.
Senator Menendez. Well, I hope, as General Counsel--I mean,
the HUD IG report focuses on the interaction between OMB and
HUD, and how OMB imposed new burdensome requirements for
releasing disaster aid to Puerto Rico. As General Counsel, I
hope you would work to standardize the process for releasing
funds, to ensure that a future Administration with a vendetta
against certain citizens, cannot successfully delay critical
aid. Can I get your commitment to look at that, if you are
confirmed?
Mr. Smith. Certainly, Senator, that is something that I can
confirm I will look at as General Counsel.
Senator Menendez. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
Chairman Brown. Thank you, Senator Menendez. Thank you both
for testifying today. For Senators who wish to submit questions
for the record, those question are due at the close of business
on Thursday, July 15. To expedite moving forward on these
nominees--Senator Toomey has signed off on these dates--to the
nominees, we would like to have your responses by noon Monday,
July 19.
Thank you again for your testimony, thank you for your
willingness to serve, and thank you to your families for their
support.
The hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 11:04 a.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
[Prepared statements, biographical sketches of nominees,
and responses to written questions supplied for the record
follow:]
PREPARED STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN SHERROD BROWN
Today, we will consider two nominations for the Commerce
Department's U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service and the Department of
Housing and Urban Development.
The President's nominee to serve as Director General of the U.S.
and Foreign Commercial Service is Arun Venkataraman.
For over two decades, Mr. Venkataraman has worked on matters of
international trade both in the public and private sectors. He
currently serves as Counselor to the Secretary of Commerce, advising
the Department on trade and other international economic matters.
And in the Obama-Biden administration he served in the Commerce
Department's International Trade Administration.
Mr. Venkataraman holds a J.D. from Columbia Law School, a Master of
Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and
Diplomacy, and a B.A. from Tufts University.
The agency Mr. Venkataraman has been nominated to lead exists to
create American opportunity abroad, because we assume it will grow
American jobs at home.
But, in the past, too often it has meant creating corporate
opportunity abroad and loss of jobs, especially union jobs, in places
like mine and the Ranking Member's home State.
We welcome you to the Committee.
We will also consider the nomination of a key housing expert today
to join the senior leadership of HUD.
Damon Smith, the President's nominee to serve as General Counsel at
HUD, currently serves as a Senior Advisor to Secretary Fudge.
Mr. Smith is the grandson of a Tuskegee Airman and we're proud to
claim him as Athens, Ohio's, own--in addition to his wife, Janine, he's
joined today by his parents Bill and Charlene, who still live in Athens
and worked at Ohio University.
He joined the Biden-Harris administration after serving as Senior
Director of Advocacy and Counsel at the Credit Union National
Association (CUNA).
He previously served as the Senior Counsel and Acting General
Counsel at HUD during the Obama-Biden administration, providing legal
and policy guidance, and setting the Department's litigation strategy
and regulatory agenda.
Before his Government service, he was a law professor at both
Rutgers and at American Universities. He has also served as an urban
planner in East St. Louis, Illinois, and St. Louis, Missouri.
Mr. Smith is a graduate of Harvard Law School and holds a
bachelor's degree in English and a master's degree in urban planning
from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
I look forward to both of your testimonies today.
______
PREPARED STATEMENT OF SENATOR PATRICK J. TOOMEY
Mr. Chairman, thank you.
Mr. Venkataraman and Mr. Smith, welcome to you both. You've been
nominated for important leadership positions at the Commerce Department
and HUD.
At Commerce, the Director General of the U.S. and Foreign
Commercial Service and Assistant Secretary for Global Markets must
stand up for the interests of U.S. exporters overseas. This includes
addressing barriers to entry in foreign markets and attracting foreign
direct investment, known as FDI, into the U.S. Many U.S. businesses and
jobs depend upon exports. This position is critically important right
now as COVID-19 led to the imposition of new trade barriers and a sharp
decline in global FDI.
The Assistant Secretary will face a host of challenges right off
the bat. The previous Administration's trade wars alienated our allies.
For example, many of them imposed retaliatory tariffs on U.S. exports
after Section 232 tariffs labeled their steel and aluminum exports a
``national security threat.''
``Buy American'' policies that seek to limit foreign access to U.S.
Government procurement contracts have caused our trading partners to
threaten to do the same, potentially taking away a major export market
for U.S. businesses. Foreign countries also frequently impose nontariff
technical barriers to trade, to limit U.S. entry and protect their
domestic industries. The Assistant Secretary must oversee efforts to
convince foreign Governments to overcome these concerns, remove these
obstacles, and allow our businesses market access.
Another major responsibility of the Assistant Secretary is to
oversee U.S. Government efforts to attract FDI into the U.S. The U.S.
has long been a magnet for FDI, due to our skilled workforce, broad
capital markets, strong legal protections for investors, and attractive
business environment. But FDI has faced challenges due to COVID-19. In
2020, global FDI fell 42 percent according to U.N. Conference on Trade
and Development.
In addition, the Biden administration is making attracting FDI more
difficult. The Administration has proposed burdensome regulations and
corporate taxes that would make it less desirable to invest in the U.S.
And the Administration's support for a waiver of IP protections for
vaccines sends a worrying signal to investors in IP-intensive
industries.
If confirmed, I expect you to use your position to promote policies
that will achieve the mission entrusted to you. That means giving a
voice to U.S. exporters in the Administration's policy decisions and
advocating for policies that make the U.S. an attractive destination
for foreign direct investment.
Now turning to HUD: HUD's General Counsel plays an important role
advising the agency on what it can and cannot do. HUD needs a General
Counsel who will help ensure effective oversight of the Federal tax
dollars it spends. That means rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse. This
is critically important given the $60 billion given to HUD this past
year and the $68 billion requested for the next fiscal year.
Unfortunately, HUD is already making poor choices on this front.
For example, the agency has made it easier for illegal immigrants to
get emergency housing vouchers by waiving regulations that require
verification of citizenship or legal immigration status. In addition,
HUD removed sensible restrictions on Puerto Rico's use of disaster
recovery funds. These restrictions required Puerto Rico to spend these
funds in tranches and to have expenditures reviewed by an independent
financial monitor. By eliminating these requirements, HUD is all but
guaranteeing that a Government with chronic financial mismanagement
problems will misspend taxpayer dollars.
The General Counsel must ensure HUD is complying with the law
despite political pressures. In other words, he can't be a ``yes'' man.
What does that mean in practice?
First, the General Counsel needs to push back on policies that are
inconsistent with the law. Unfortunately, we've seen HUD ignore the law
recently. For example, Congress has explicitly prevented any part of a
borrower's downpayment for a FHA loan from being financed by an entity
benefiting from the mortgage transaction. But, as I noted in a recent
letter to HUD, the agency continues to turn a blind eye to circular
funding schemes where FHA borrowers finance their own downpayment
assistance in contravention of the law.
Second, the General Counsel needs to ensure all legal requirements
with respect to rulemaking and guidance are followed. That means
meaningfully considering all input from stakeholders, preparing all
supporting materials to accompany significant policy guidance, and
completing regulatory impact analyses which describe the economic
burdens on stakeholders.
Third, the General Counsel needs to be readily available and work
with Congress to ensure laws are faithfully implemented. That includes
responding fully to oversight requests that come from Congress,
specifically Members of the Banking Committee.
Let me close by saying: Mr. Venkataraman, I look forward to hearing
how you plan to effectively support U.S. exporters overseas and attract
foreign investment to the U.S. Mr. Smith, I look forward to hearing how
you will ensure that HUD faithfully complies with the law and conducts
thorough oversight of how it spends taxpayer dollars. If confirmed, you
both will have important missions to fulfill.
______
PREPARED STATEMENT OF ARUN VENKATARAMAN
To Be Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of The
United States and Foreign Commercial Service
July 13, 2021
Chairman Brown, Ranking Member Toomey, Members of the Committee,
thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today. I am honored
to be nominated by President Biden to be the Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Global Markets and Director General of the U.S. and
Foreign Commercial Service. I want to thank Secretary Raimondo for her
support of my nomination. I also want to thank the Committee for the
opportunity to meet with members of your staff this past week.
I feel the deepest sense of gratitude and humility in being
considered for this position. When my parents brought me to this
country 45 years ago, we could not appreciate that we were part of a
proud lineage of immigrants that came through New York, like us, in
search of better opportunities. And, my parents certainly could never
have imagined that those opportunities would lead to my being here
today to be considered for this position by the Committee.
I remain grateful to my parents for making all this possible
because of their bold decision to move 8,000 miles away from everything
they knew to start a new life for us here in America. Their support for
everything that I do has been unwavering, and I am glad to have them
here today to share this experience with me.
I have had the privilege of spending much of my career in public
service, working on a wide range of international trade issues on
behalf of the American people. I have negotiated with some of our most
challenging trading partners on issues like subsidies and tech policy
and held them accountable to their commitments under our trade
agreements. I have collaborated with foreign Governments to address
shared challenges in third-country markets. I have also helped defend
the legitimate policy tools we have to protect American companies and
workers from unfair State-backed competition from countries like China.
And, in these and other areas, I have worked extensively across the
multiple agencies and with various stakeholders to build a unified
position for the Government.
From working and leading teams in highly matrixed organizations,
both in and out of Government, I fully understand that no one of us has
a monopoly on solutions to the types of trade problems we are being
called on to address at this time in our history. We increasingly need
to look beyond our silos to bring to bear the right perspectives and
knowledge to any challenge. That is why I am committed to working
together with my colleagues across the Commerce Department and across
the Administration, and with Congress, and with all stakeholders, to
meet those challenges head-on.
In over 20 years working on international trade, my career has
allowed me to see how trade works from different vantage points--from
the judicial branch, from an international organization, from the
private sector, and from the public sector. I believe that Global
Markets is uniquely situated to make trade work for American firms and
their workers. This team works with foreign Governments to make sure
American firms get the fair access they deserve to foreign markets.
Global Markets also helps small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
become new exporters and take advantage of the commercial opportunities
created by trade agreements. Finally, Global Markets leverages the
inherent attractiveness of the United States as an investment
destination to bring foreign companies to America and create jobs.
Through these core activities, Global Markets brings to life the
potential that trade and investment offer the American people. And I am
committed to seeing that mission through to its fullest, if confirmed.
One last point I would note for the Committee: I fully appreciate
the privilege I would have if I were confirmed to this position. I have
had the fortune of working closely with Global Markets through much of
my Government career, most recently as the International Trade
Administration's Director of Policy in the Obama administration. I know
firsthand the high caliber of staff and the deep commitment of the
Global Markets team to creating opportunities and bringing the benefits
of trade to the American people. If confirmed, I commit to you to be
worthy of leading this high-performing team to do what it does best and
drive the Administration's efforts to strengthen precisely that
connection between trade and the American people.
Thank you again for this opportunity to be considered for this
position and to appear before you today. I look forward to your
questions.
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PREPARED STATEMENT OF DAMON Y. SMITH
To Be General Counsel, Department of Housing and Urban Development
July 13, 2021
Chairman Brown, Ranking Member Toomey, and distinguished Members of
the Committee, I am honored and humbled to appear before you today as
the nominee for General Counsel of the Department of Housing and Urban
Development.
I want to first take this opportunity to thank President Biden for
nominating me, and Secretary Fudge for her leadership and support. I
also want to thank my family and friends for their unwavering love,
prayers and support that have sustained me over the years and to this
very day. I am especially grateful to my mother and father. The lessons
that they have taught and the values that they instilled in me are
integral to who I am as a husband, father, professional and public
servant. Finally, I want to thank my wife, Janine, who served as a
staffer here in the United States Senate and has passed along her great
respect for this institution. She has been a true partner and a
blessing to me, our 3 children, and entire family.
HUD's Office of General Counsel is a special place to me, filled
with dedicated attorneys, analysts and support staff of the highest
caliber. I have had the pleasure of working with and leading them in
other capacities, but, if confirmed, it would be a distinct honor to
serve with them and all the incredible employees of HUD as their
General Counsel.
There are several reasons why I find myself here today, but I would
like to share a few in particular. My first lessons in housing and
community came from my grandmother, who passed away this past March,
just short of her 100th birthday. She did not own a car and used to
walk everywhere--often for many miles and often in high heels if headed
to work--and I would tag along every summer soaking in her stories
about the people and communities that we passed. Everyone seemed to
know her and love her, particularly in north Champaign where she lived
for almost her entire life. She did not have much in the way of formal
education, but she taught me some of the most valuable lessons that
have served me well throughout my career, including the importance of a
safe and supportive community. My first lessons in public service came
from my father and grandfather, who both served honorably in the
military. Their examples taught me that serving others in whatever way
we can is incredibly rewarding and one of life's highest callings.
In my career as an urban planner, academic, and attorney, I have
worked on community development, housing, and housing finance issues
with a wide variety of partners and clients. The through line in my
diverse experiences is a fundamental belief in our ability to improve
communities, provide opportunity and create better housing and
development outcomes for everyone.
My work on these issues began in earnest when I sought my master's
in urban planning at the University of Illinois. As a student and in my
career as a planner and academic, I collaborated with low-income
residents on planning, housing, and community development issues and
learned incredibly valuable lessons in perspective and perseverance
along the way. As an attorney in private practice, I have worked on
real estate and regulatory issues with developers, building owners and
financial institutions and learned about the importance of clear
guidelines, ethical leadership, and building and rewarding a culture of
compliance. And as a public servant at the State and Federal levels, I
have provided advice and counsel to policymakers and attorneys at all
levels of Government, learning how to work collaboratively and manage
people effectively to achieve better outcomes.
All these experiences have increased my knowledge and appreciation
of the work done by a myriad of stakeholders to ensure that we can have
strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes
for all. If confirmed, I will use the knowledge gleaned from these
experiences to ensure the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, and their staffs
are provided with timely and helpful counsel. And I will work hard to
ensure that the Office of General Counsel and the entire Department
operate ethically and effectively in delivering on our critical mission
for the American people.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today. I look
forward to your questions.
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RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS OF CHAIRMAN BROWN
FROM ARUN VENKATARAMAN
Q.1. Where have you excelled in past positions in attracting,
hiring, and promoting people of color in positions in your
organization(s)? Where might there be room for improvement?
A.1. To date, I have had limited opportunity to advance the
careers of people of color. When given the opportunity, I have
worked closely with my recruiting team to ensure that we did
not adopt a passive approach to issuing notices of open
positions, but instead, identified specific and nontraditional
channels of distribution to reach the most diverse pool of
potential candidates possible. I also worked with colleagues to
ensure that early stages of recruitment and interviews
reflected that diverse pool. As a manager, I have strongly
supported my team's active connections with mentors and sought
to identify specific professional opportunities that aligned
with their career development goals, which has resulted in
their promotions.
With 1 million minority-owned businesses and over 1 million
women-owned businesses in our country, according to the latest
available data, Global Markets must have the diverse workforce
to reach those businesses and ensure that they can avail
themselves of the Government services to help them export and
grow jobs in their communities. If confirmed, I look forward to
prioritizing the search for, and promotion of, the most
qualified candidates that reflect the diverse backgrounds of
all Americans, including in terms of race, gender, ethnicity,
veteran status, and sexual orientation. I commit to working
with ITA's Diversity and Inclusion Council and Employee
Resource Groups/Affinity Groups to organize and develop
strategies to ensure participation rates of minorities, People
with Disabilities, and women in the talent pipeline and
especially in leadership positions.
Q.2. What specific measures will you use to evaluate the
success of the U.S. Department of Commerce in understanding and
addressing the needs of Black, Indigenous and People of Color
(BIPOC)? And, will you work with the Secretary and senior
officials to keep Congress apprised, as appropriate, on the
progress being made on these measures?
A.2. I am committed to making sure that Global Markets,
including the export promotion services we offer to the
American people, reflects a more robust understanding of the
needs of BIPOC communities. If confirmed, I will direct our
team to ensure equity of access to these communities so they
are aware of, and can take advantage of, our services to help
grow their businesses and jobs through exporting and
investments. To that end, we will evaluate our success by: (1)
measuring the number of newly engaged clients from these
communities that have not previously received our assistance;
(2) developing new strategic partnerships with local, regional,
and national organizations that serve these communities, to
enhance our outreach efforts; (3) organizing trade education
and facilitation events that focus on the unmet needs of these
communities; and (4) training our client-facing staff to
understand and identify opportunities to better reach and
assist previously underserved companies. I commit to working
with the Secretary and other senior officials to keep Congress
apprised of the progress made on these important issues.
Q.3. What is your plan for creating an inclusive working
environment for employees within your office?
A.3. I believe that proper staffing, empowerment and
recognition are key to building an inclusive working
environment, and I would be committed to this effort, if
confirmed. This means first ensuring that additional positions
in the office of the Assistant Secretary for Global Markets are
hired with an eye towards seeking out candidates with a
diversity of backgrounds and experiences, personal and
professional. If confirmed, I would also seek to ensure the
visibility of these colleagues throughout the organization,
provide them with ownership of workstreams, and solicit their
views through both group meetings and one-on-one conversations.
I would also work to publicly acknowledge their contributions
and contribute to their successes so that others can be fully
aware of their efforts.
In addition, if confirmed, I would fully support, and look
to implement, recommendations of ITA's recently inaugurated
Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council (DIAC), composed of 13
members geographically dispersed around the world that
represent their business units, including Global Markets. The
DIAC works collaboratively with the ITA Human Capital office on
creative ways to promote outreach to best attract people of all
walks of life including people of color. The DIAC operates in
accordance with a comprehensive Charter with focus on the
following functional areas, adding others as needed in the
future: Recruitment and Outreach; Development; Retention and
Succession; and Reaching More Diverse Customers.
------
RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS OF SENATOR TOOMEY
FROM ARUN VENKATARAMAN
Q.1. Congressional Oversight--Please provide your philosophy on
how the Commerce Department International Trade
Administration's (ITA) Global Markets Department will approach
and respond to Congressional information requests (both for
documentary information and oral testimony), if you are
confirmed.
A.1. I view Congress as a vital partner in the execution of
Global Markets' mission, together with a broad range of
stakeholders and agencies across the Executive Branch. As
Global Markets develops and delivers services to small business
exporters, works with foreign companies and local economic
development organizations to bring investment and jobs into the
U.S., and engages foreign Governments to improve the business
climate for American firms and workers, I would, if confirmed,
welcome Congressional input into how these objectives can be
better achieved. In order to facilitate this partnership, I
would seek to ensure that my team regularly provides
information to Congressional staff about Global Markets'
activities and responds in a timely manner to all Congressional
requests for information.
More broadly, I understand and respect Congress' duty to
conduct oversight of Executive Branch agencies and functions.
If confirmed, I am committed to ensuring that my team is
responsive to oversight requests and provides Congress with the
information that it needs consistent with appropriate law and
regulations.
Q.2. If confirmed, do you intend to respond to information
requests differently depending on who is making the
Congressional information request (whether it's the Chair of
the Congressional Committee, the Ranking Member, or another
Member of Congress)? Please answer ``yes'' or ``no.'' If your
answer is ``yes,'' please explain.
A.2. I understand and respect Congress' duty to conduct
oversight of Executive Branch agencies and functions. If
confirmed, I am committed to ensuring that my team is
responsive to oversight requests and provides Congress with the
information that it needs consistent with appropriate law and
regulations.
Q.3. Will you commit that, if confirmed, you will respond in a
timely manner and fully comply with all information requests
from me? Please answer ``yes'' or ``no.'' If your answer is
``no,'' please explain.
A.3. If confirmed, I am committed to ensuring that my team is
responsive to oversight requests and provides Congress with the
information that it needs consistent with appropriate law and
regulations.
Q.4. Will you commit that, if confirmed, you will make yourself
and any other Global Markets employee expeditiously available
to provide oral testimony (including but not limited to
briefings, hearings, and transcribed interviews) to the
Committee on any matter within its jurisdiction, upon the
request of either the Chairman or Ranking Member? Please answer
``yes'' or ``no.'' If your answer is ``no,'' please explain
why.
A.4. If confirmed, I am committed to ensuring that my team is
responsive to requests for oral testimony consistent with
appropriate law and regulations.
Q.5. Attracting Foreign Direct Investment Into the United
States--In 2020, global foreign direct investment (FDI) fell 42
percent according to U.N. Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD). This low level has not been seen since the 1990s. It
is over 30 percent lower than the investment decline that
followed the 2008 global financial crisis. If confirmed, you
will oversee the SelectUSA program, which is charged with
leading U.S. efforts at attracting FDI into the United States.
How do you plan to leverage U.S. resources to continue to
attract high-impact, job-creating FDI to our country?
A.5. As you mention, if confirmed, I would welcome the
opportunity to lead the SelectUSA program to facilitate job-
creating business investment into the United States and raise
awareness of the important role that foreign direct investment
(FDI) plays in the U.S. economy during this critical post-COVID
recovery time. The downturn in global FDI makes this mission
even more critical--the program has seen more client requests
this year to date than any other year in SelectUSA's history.
Promoting inbound investment at this time begins with
supporting the Administration's ongoing efforts to combat COVID
by delivering vaccines to all eligible Americans. Addressing
this public health crisis is key to putting the U.S. back on a
long-term trajectory of positive growth and driving ever
greater investment flows into the country. The success of this
year's SelectUSA Investment Summit is a testament to global
perceptions of our ability to emerge stronger from the
pandemic.
If confirmed, I would reinforce the Administration's
efforts to ensure the security and resiliency of supply chains
in critical industries by working to attract investment and
strengthen commercial and governmental partnerships in these
sectors. I would also support the program and its initiatives
promoting early stage innovative FDI (SelectUSA Tech) and FDI
from female-founders (SelectUSA Global Women in Tech). In
addition, if confirmed, I would deepen engagement with local
governments and Economic Development Organizations across the
country to keep the U.S. at the forefront of global
competitiveness to support, and add to, the 7.8 million U.S.
workers directly employed by FDI.
Q.6. The primary reason attributed to the dive in FDI is
uncertainty over the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is
important to the U.S. recovery that we overcome these barriers.
The SelectUSA program coordinates U.S. Government efforts to
attract and retain FDI into the United States. How would you
work with other members of the SelectUSA Federal Interagency
Investment Working Group to resolve investors' uncertainty
related to the COVID-19 pandemic?
A.6. Working across agencies to develop whole-of-Government
messaging and facilitating productive FDI that supports U.S.
jobs is always critical to Global Markets' investment mission.
That whole-of-Government effort, including through the
Interagency Investment Working Group (IIWG), is all the more
important at a time when we need to reassure investment
partners about the fight against COVID-19. I would work with
the White House, and across agencies, to underscore the
progress the Government has made in delivering vaccines to most
Americans. I would also support the interagency work evaluating
travel conditions with a view to facilitating international
travel at the earliest appropriate opportunity. At the same
time, I would continue to press forward with the IIWG's work
reviewing individual and ongoing casework to attract FDI and
implementing joint programs such as webinars that can help
investors understand the U.S. is an unparalleled market in its
stability, size, and strength.
Q.7. Export Promotion Through Trade Agreements--The clearest
and most straightforward way for the U.S. Government to engage
in export promotion is to pursue bilateral and multilateral
free trade agreements (FTAs). What do you view as the role of
free trade agreements in facilitating market access?
A.7. Global Markets is committed to helping develop the best
policy environment to encourage the export of U.S. goods and
services. FTAs play an important role in securing that policy
environment and thereby facilitating market access for those
goods and services. Global Markets works with other offices in
the Commerce Department and with other agencies like USTR to
ensure that our trading partners live up to their commitments
in those FTAs so that U.S. firms and workers get the benefits
of the deals negotiated on their behalf. If confirmed, I am
committed to driving the work of Global Markets to make sure
that those FTAs, and the market access that they provide, bring
benefits to American workers and their families.
Q.8. In your position as an advocate for U.S. exporters, will
you seek to encourage the Biden administration to pursue trade-
facilitating agreements and policies?
A.8. If confirmed, I will advance the export promotion mission
of Global Markets by using all the tools available to support
opening foreign markets, keeping them open, and encouraging
foreign purchases of U.S. goods and services. I would work
closely with USTR, if confirmed, to pursue trade-facilitating
agreements that produce benefits for American workers and their
families. I would also support the deployment of other tools
available to expand U.S. exports, including bilateral
commercial dialogues, joint actions with trading partners to
address shared challenges, and participation in regional and
multilateral venues like the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC) forum and the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Q.9. In recent years, there has been a gradual rise in new
restrictions and nontariff barriers to trade across the globe.
How do you plan to engage with other countries in addressing
unfair market barriers, expediting certification procedures,
and reducing technical barriers to trade?
A.9. As the principal advocate in the U.S. Government for small
business exporters, Global Markets is uniquely aware of the
disproportionate impact that trade barriers, especially
unjustified certification procedures and other technical
barriers to trade, can have on small businesses. Bearing in
mind the goal of making trade agreements work for American
workers and their families, and the critical job-creating role
that small businesses play, I would, if confirmed, ensure
meaningful engagements with foreign countries on the
elimination of barriers that produce benefits for small
businesses. I would also elevate within the Commerce
Department, and with USTR, those barriers that raise concerns
of compliance with trade agreements, so that U.S. firms and
workers get the benefits they deserve under those agreements.
Finally, if confirmed, I would work closely with allies to
pursue shared approaches to global standards and combat
technical barriers to trade that allow our values to drive the
new rules of the road.
Q.10. Securing Procurement Market Access for U.S. Exporters--
The World Trade Organization's (WTO) Agreement on Global
Procurement (GPA) is a plurilateral agreement based on
reciprocal market access for procurement, and for most of its
history the United States has encouraged other countries to
join the GPA in order to help secure market access for U.S.
exporters. Your position oversees the Global Markets Advocacy
Center, whose mission is to help U.S. companies compete for
foreign procurement contracts. Do you support the WTO GPA as a
tool for ITA's Global Markets Advocacy Center to help U.S.
businesses secure foreign procurement contracts?
A.10. The WTO GPA helps reinforce Global Markets' advocacy on
the importance of fair and transparent procurement processes
that allow Governments to purchase the best goods and services
suited to their needs. Fairness and transparency in these
processes are critical to the work of the Advocacy Center and
more broadly to the ability of U.S. goods and services to
compete for these foreign purchases. If confirmed, I will
continue Global Markets' strong commitment to fair and
transparent procurement processes that facilitate U.S. exports,
including through the processes required under the WTO GPA.
Q.11. The Biden administration has proposed ``Buy American''
policies to tighten domestic content rules for procurement
contracts, including ``working with allies to modernize
international trade rules and associated domestic regulations
regarding Government procurement to make sure that the U.S. and
allies can use their own taxpayer dollars to spur investment in
their own countries.'' \1\ This would likely lead to trading
partners retaliating by narrowing their own procurement markets
to American exporters. If the Biden administration moves
forward with such policies, how do you plan to work to make
sure that other countries do not restrict their export markets
in retaliation?
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\1\ https://joebiden.com/made-in-america/
A.11. If confirmed, I would work with colleagues across ITA to
reach out to WTO GPA members and trading partners to ensure
that rules-based procurement regimes, guaranteeing fairness and
transparency, continue to be adopted by countries around the
world. As the provisions of the current Made in America
Executive Order remain consistent with our trade agreement
obligations, I would support ITA efforts to monitor and ensure
that trading partners also continue to uphold their reciprocal
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
trade agreement commitments to the United States.
Q.12. Global Carbon Tax as a Barrier to U.S. Exports--ITA's
Global Markets Department seeks to address and remove foreign
Government policies, practices, or procedures that unfairly or
unnecessarily restrict U.S. exports. Pursuant to that, the
European Union (EU) is expected to soon formally release its
proposed Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). This
proposal, if enacted, will likely be a substantial barrier to
U.S. exporters seeking to sell to the EU, through both tariff
and nontariff barriers to trade. This proposal would also
likely be found to violate WTO ``national treatment''
requirements--which State that imported products be given ``no
less favorable'' treatment than that given to like domestic
products.
Do you agree that a carbon border adjustment tax is a
barrier to trade that has the potential to discriminate against
U.S. exporters?
A.12. The United States, like the EU, is committed to keeping
1.5 C within reach, and we are both aligned in our long-term
(2050) and short-term (2030) climate objectives. We believe
that carbon border adjustment measures, if designed
appropriately, represent one of several potentially useful
tools as countries implement their emissions reduction
strategies. If confirmed, I will work with Congress and all
stakeholders, as well other offices in ITA and across the
agencies, to develop a fuller understanding of any carbon
border adjustment to avoid any inadvertent harm or
discrimination against U.S. exporters.
Q.13. If this policy is enacted, how will you work with the EU
to prevent this policy from unfairly harming U.S. exporters?
A.13. Global Markets and ITA are working closely with USTR and
other U.S. Government agencies to analyze the recently released
proposal for a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) and
will hold consultations with U.S. industry on the impact of the
EU CBAM on U.S. exports and commercial interests. Information
on the technical details will be critical to understanding the
full impact of the measure on U.S. companies. If confirmed, I
look forward to continuing to consult and exchange views
informally and formally with our EU colleagues in coordination
with the U.S. Trade Representative, including in the U.S.-EU
Trade and Technology Council.
------
RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS OF SENATOR DAINES
FROM ARUN VENKATARAMAN
Q.1. Protecting U.S. intellectual property is essential for
maintaining our competitive edge when competing in the global
economy. China in particular has been a long-standing abuser of
IP rights and protections which is why I have led efforts to
ensure the U.S. holds China accountable for its IP commitments
in the China Phase One deal and elsewhere. What can the U.S. do
to better support and enforce IP protections in China?
A.1. The Biden administration will continue to work with
Congress to ensure the United States holds China accountable
for its intellectual property (IP) commitments. Thorough
implementation of the Phase One deal is key to meaningful IP
reforms in China and a fair and effective Chinese IP system.
The Department of Commerce actively supports USTR and the
interagency in tracking China's compliance with its obligations
under the IP Chapter of the Phase One deal. Commerce experts at
the Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) have participated in
several of the technical-level discussions led by USTR to
better understand how China's IP action plan will fulfill
China's commitments. In addition, Commerce monitors the
practical impact of Chinese reforms on the ability of U.S.
rights holders to protect and enforce their IP in China.
The Department of Commerce, through ITA and the USPTO,
actively assists U.S. firms with IP questions and issues in
China, among other foreign markets. Our U.S. Foreign and
Commercial Service officers and IP Attaches based in China
provide critical on the ground assistance to U.S. companies
with IP concerns. The Department will address the challenge of
protecting U.S. intellectual property from theft and unfair
competition by helping our innovators and creators identify and
protect their IP, providing information to U.S. businesses and
practitioners on IP protection, and working to maintain high
standards for IP protection in any future trade agreements. The
Department will also use the tools at its disposal to ensure
our trading partners abide by their international commitments,
including those respecting IP protection and enforcement, and
will actively participate and defend U.S. IP interests in
international forums and standard-setting processes. If
confirmed, I will work to ensure that Global Markets deepens
its partnership across ITA, and with USPTO, to best protect the
innovation central to long-term U.S. competitive advantage.
Q.2. I also believe that India will play an even larger role in
the global economy for years to come and the U.S. should work
to expand economic ties and consider entering formal
negotiations with India, which presents an enormous opportunity
for growth for U.S. farmers, especially Montana's pulse crop
farmers, and small businesses in addition to the strategic,
regional, and geopolitical significance of India as a
counterweight to China's growing influence. What will be your
priorities in expanding opportunities and helping level the
playing field for U.S. businesses in India's market?
A.2. I agree that India is an increasingly critical market for
U.S. exporters and innovators and a strategic partner for
addressing global challenges. If confirmed, I will prioritize
our engagement and focus on the opportunities presented by
India, including for rural exporters and exporters from
underserved communities, and identify key sectors for strategic
collaboration that help both countries meet shared challenges
around the world. I would, if confirmed, look for ways to build
on the participation of the private sector through the U.S.-
India CEO Forum (Forum) and the U.S.-India Commercial Dialogue
(CD). I would also seek to drive concrete outcomes from any
engagement that would facilitate commercial partnerships
between U.S. and Indian companies, including with respect to
the digital economy.
Q.3. As you know, the International Trade Administration plays
an important role in seeking to remove or reduce unfair
barriers to trade in foreign markets. While individual issues
and barriers to trade are inevitable in any market, pursuing
trade agreements can be the most effective way to improve
market access substantially for U.S. farmers, ranchers,
manufacturers, and businesses. While not directly responsible
for developing trade policy, how do you see ITA working with
USTR and other agencies in the Federal Government to advance
and improve U.S. trade policy?
A.3. ITA and Global Markets have a very close working
relationship with USTR and other agencies in the Federal
Government to advance and improve U.S. trade policy. The
President has made clear that his Administration will pursue
ways to strengthen the linkage between trade agreements and
American workers and families, and ITA and Global Markets can
play a meaningful role in supporting that linkage. If
confirmed, I fully intend on continuing this engagement,
sharing ITA's expertise and data and analytical support, and
providing inputs and viewpoints from stakeholders including the
U.S. business community to the trade policymaking process.
------
RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS OF CHAIRMAN BROWN
FROM DAMON Y. SMITH
Q.1. Where have you excelled in past positions in attracting,
hiring, and promoting people of color in positions in your
organization(s)? Where might there be room for improvement?
A.1. I believe that for HUD to succeed in its mission, we need
to attract and retain talent from every background and walk of
life. I have served on the hiring and diversity committees of
two law firms and had the opportunity at HUD to promote staff
to fill critical managerial roles in the Office of General
Counsel. In each of those instances, I excelled at attracting,
hiring, and promoting highly qualified people of color. There
is always room for improvement, and HUD's Office of General
Counsel is no exception. If I am confirmed, I will ensure that
our Legal Honors Program is well-publicized to law school
affinity groups, participate in our recruitment outreach
efforts, and work closely with our managerial staff to ensure
that everyone has opportunities to work on high-profile
projects in their area of expertise and has access to rotations
and training that can advance their careers.
Q.2. What specific measures will you use to evaluate the
success of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
in understanding and addressing the needs of Black, Indigenous
and People of Color (BIPOC)? And, will you work with the
Secretary and senior officials to keep Congress apprised, as
appropriate, on the progress being made on these measures?
A.2. Understanding and addressing community needs is vital to
HUD's mission to create strong, sustainable, inclusive
communities and quality affordable homes for all. Our Secretary
and Deputy Secretary have already committed to requesting
sufficient staff resources so that the Department can fully
execute its mission in all communities, including BIPOC
communities that have been disproportionately impacted by
COVID-19 and its economic fallout. If confirmed, I would work
with the Secretary and other senior officials to partner with
our grantees to enhance their capacity to effectively respond
to community needs and ensure they comply with the law. We can
measure our success by, among other things, the number and
quality of outreach efforts to heavily impacted communities,
increases in resources available, successful efforts made to
mitigate harms, progress in our efforts to ensure that everyone
who is able to own a home has the opportunity to do so, and an
increase in the number of tenants who are housed in safe,
sanitary, and decent housing. If confirmed, I will work with
Secretary Fudge to advance HUD's mission, and per President
Biden's Executive Order 13985, to advance the equitable
delivery of HUD's programs. I will also work with the Secretary
and our Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations office to
keep Congress apprised on the progress being made on these
goals.
Q.3. What is your plan for creating an inclusive working
environment for employees within your office?
A.3. If confirmed, I will make it a priority to build and
maintain an inclusive working environment in HUD's Office of
General Counsel (OGC). HUD OGC is a diverse workplace with
leadership from many different backgrounds. I will work to
ensure those diverse voices are a part of the decision-making
process when it comes to office initiatives, legal
determinations, and our efforts at recruitment and retention of
talent. Through training sessions and meetings, I will make
sure everyone understands that we value the contributions that
our employees bring to meeting HUD's mission, and that,
together, we are responsible for maintaining a workplace that
is fair, inclusive, and free from all forms of harassment and
discrimination. I will maintain and enhance training that
reinforces the values of civil treatment and building teams
based on mutual respect and collegial relations.
------
RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS OF SENATOR TOOMEY
FROM DAMON Y. SMITH
Q.1. Organization of the Office of General Counsel (OGC)--How
do you view your role with regards to other program offices?
How will you shape their priorities on policy?
A.1. With respect to policy decisions, the primary function of
the General Counsel is to provide the Secretary, the Deputy
Secretary, and the program offices with legal counsel. While
enhancing policymakers' understanding of the law is critical to
those policy decisions, should I be confirmed, I would not view
my role as determining policy priorities, but rather ensuring
that policy decisions are informed by the best legal counsel.
Q.2. Will you commit to ensuring that OGC provides legal advice
on hiring matters rather than deferring to HUD's Office of the
Human Chief Capital Officer?
A.2. I am a strong believer in collaboration and relationship
building, and I believe OGC has a critical role to play in
advising the Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHCO),
as well as all of the Agency's support offices and program
offices. If confirmed, as General Counsel, I will serve as the
chief legal officer for the Department, and I will fulfill my
role as General Counsel by providing timely and effective legal
advice to all parts of the Agency, including OCHCO.
Q.3. HUD's Departmental Enforcement Center (DEC) was created
during the late 1990s, and there is sometimes been confusion
about the proper role of DEC. What do you view as DEC's
purpose? Where should it be housed within HUD?
A.3. The DEC plays an incredibly critical role at HUD in
ensuring the public trust by protecting residents, improving
the quality of housing, and helping our program offices
eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse. The DEC's primary role is to
bring HUD-assisted property owners into full compliance with
important obligations so that there is no compromise in the
quality or economic performance of housing for the low- and
moderate-income families and senior housing residents that we
serve. The DEC works closely with the Office of General
Counsel's Program Enforcement attorneys and our program offices
in Public and Indian Housing and Community Planning Development
to ensure that HUD funds are properly accounted for and spent
in accordance with our requirements. Should I be confirmed as
General Counsel, the DEC will have strong support within OGC,
and I will help it broaden and deepen its positive impact on
HUD programs.
Q.4. How will you ensure that the legal opinions of OGC staff
are elevated and not ignored?
A.4. I have a strong belief in the expertise and
professionalism of OGC staff. I also believe OGC has a critical
role to play in partnership with HUD leadership to ensure that
all decisions are well-informed and benefit from excellent
legal counsel. Should I be confirmed as General Counsel, I will
act in accordance with this understanding of the key role of
OGC staff and the benefits that they provide throughout the
Department.
Q.5. What will inform your decision to overrule any
recommendations or not accept legal analysis prepared by OGC
attorneys?
A.5. I am a strong supporter and admirer of OGC's dedicated
career attorneys. Should I be confirmed, I will always give
great weight to their expertise, legal analysis, and
recommendations in making decisions. Ultimately, as General
Counsel I will accept responsibility for using that input to
reach the best legal conclusions I can based on the law, facts,
and evidence.
Q.6. Disparate Impact--HUD recently proposed reinstating its
2013 disparate impact rule. I'm concerned that this proposal
willfully disregards the U.S. Supreme Court's decisions in
Texas Dept. of Housing and Community Affairs v. Inclusive
Communities Project, Inc., 576 U.S. 519 (2015), which
identified constitutional guardrails for disparate impact
liability. Under HUD's 2013 disparate impact rule, it seemed
that defendants were often guilty until proven innocent.
Defendants lacked the protections announced by the Supreme
Court in Inclusive Communities, like the need for a plaintiff
to prove a robust causality between the plaintiff's action and
the alleged harm. Reinstating this rule without taking
Inclusive Communities into account will invite a wave of
frivolous lawsuits against housing providers and made it
costlier to access affordable housing.
Do you acknowledge that Inclusive Communities defines
limitations for the scope of disparate impact liability?
A.6. In affirming the consensus of the courts of appeals and of
HUD that the Fair Housing Act provides for disparate impact
liability, Inclusive Communities stated that ``disparate-impact
liability is properly limited in key respects'' and highlighted
some of them. For example, it cited HUD's 2013 rule in
observing that a defendant must be given the opportunity to
state and explain the valid interest served by its policies.
That said, the Department has begun taking comments via notice
and comment rulemaking, and if confirmed, I will ensure that we
carefully review and respond to all comments on Inclusive
Communities and other matters before promulgating a final
regulation.
Q.7. Will you ensure that any revised rule complies with the
Supreme Court's limitations in Inclusive Communities?
A.7. If confirmed, I will ensure that any revised rule comports
with Inclusive Communities and other applicable law.
Q.8. In 2019, when now-HUD Deputy Secretary Adrianne Todman was
CEO of NAHRO, that organization filed a comment letter arguing
that HUD should exempt housing authorities from disparate
impact if a policy is ``a reasonable approach and in the
housing authority's sound discretion.'' The comment letter
quoted the Supreme Court in Inclusive Communities that
disparate impact liability should not ``second-guess . . .
approaches a housing authority should follow'' and that the
Fair Housing Act ``does not decree a particular vision of urban
development.'' As HUD General Counsel, will you evaluate the
possibility of including such a safe harbor in any revisions to
HUD's disparate impact rule?
A.8. The comment period in the rulemaking you reference is
currently open, and I do not want to prejudice that process by
stating what will be included in any revisions. In accordance
with the Department's legal responsibilities under the
Administrative Procedures Act, if confirmed, I will ensure that
the Department carefully considers any revisions to the
proposed rule that commenters may propose, including those
described in this question.
Q.9. Will you commit that any revisions to HUD's disparate
impact rule will follow the Supreme Court's 2015 dictate in
Inclusive Communities that ``disparate-impact liability [should
not] be so expansive as to inject racial considerations into
every housing decision?''
A.9. If confirmed, I will ensure that any revised rule comports
with Inclusive Communities and other applicable law.
Q.10. Will you commit that any revisions to HUD's disparate
impact rule will follow the Supreme Court's dictate in
Inclusive Communities that ``disparate impact liability must be
limited so employers [can] make . . . practical business
choices and profit-related decisions [to] sustain a vibrant and
dynamic free-enterprise system?''
A.10. If confirmed, I will ensure that any revised rule
comports with Inclusive Communities and other applicable law.
Q.11. Will you commit that any revisions to HUD's disparate
impact rule will follow the Supreme Court's dictate in
Inclusive Communities to have ``adequate safeguards'' for
defendants at the prima facie (pleading) stage so ``race [is
not] used and considered in a pervasive way [that] would almost
inexorably lead governmental or private entities to use
numerical quotas . . . ?''
A.11. If confirmed, I will ensure that any revised rule
comports with Inclusive Communities and other applicable law.
Q.12. Will you commit that any revisions to HUD's disparate
impact rule will follow the Supreme Court's dictate in
Inclusive Communities to have ``robust causality'' between the
defendant's actions and the harm to a protected class so that
defendants will not be held liable for racial disparities they
did not create?
A.12. If confirmed, I will ensure that any revised rule
comports with Inclusive Communities and other applicable law.
Q.13. Will you commit that any revisions to HUD's disparate
impact rule will follow the Supreme Court's dictate in
Inclusive Communities to focus on removing ``artificial,
arbitrary, and unnecessary barrier[s]'' to housing?
A.13. If confirmed, I will ensure that any revised rule
comports with Inclusive Communities and other applicable law.
Q.14. Regulatory Policy--Do you commit to receiving comments
from the public before publishing sub-regulatory guidance,
including industry stakeholders, housing advocates, and
families affected by HUD's policies?
A.14. I believe strongly in the benefit of public input for
Federal agency decision-making whenever required or feasible.
In formulating rules and regulations, HUD complies with the
Administrative Procedure Act. HUD has several types of sub-
regulatory guidance documents, ranging from Handbooks, Notices,
and Letters to FAQs, that serve to highlight or explain
statutory or regulatory requirements that pertain to HUD
programs or operations. HUD's sub-regulatory guidance documents
are designed to assist program participants and the public, but
do not have the force and effect of law, except pursuant to
statutory or regulatory authority or as incorporated by
contract.
If I am confirmed as General Counsel, I will commit the
Department to following the requirements of the Administrative
Procedure Act in close consultation with the Office of
Management and Budget, providing for public notice and comment
where required. Further, I will encourage our program offices
to continue existing practices for solicitation of public
feedback as appropriate in connection with sub-regulatory
guidance documents, even if it is not legally required.
Q.15. Economically significant policy changes require
additional documentation such as a regulatory impact analysis
(RIA) that comprehensively considers impacts on all
stakeholders.
Will you advise HUD to review all proposed changes to check
if they are economically significant?
A.15. Yes. If confirmed, I will ensure that HUD works closely
with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) to
follow Executive Order 12866, which requires for each matter
identified or determined to be a significant regulatory action
that the agency provide an assessment to OIRA, including the
underlying analysis, of the costs and benefits anticipated from
the regulatory action, together, to the extent feasible, a
quantification of those benefits.
Q.16. Do you commit to preparing RIAs and other additional
materials for any economically significant policy changes?
A.16. Yes. If confirmed, I will ensure that HUD works closely
with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) to
follow Executive Order 12866, which requires for each matter
identified or determined to be a significant regulatory action
that the agency provide an assessment to OIRA, including the
underlying analysis, of the costs and benefits anticipated from
the regulatory action, together, to the extent feasible, a
quantification of those benefits.
Q.17. Congressional Oversight--Please provide your philosophy
on how HUD will approach and respond to Congressional
information requests (both for documentary information and oral
testimony), if you are confirmed.
A.17. I recognize and respect Congress' important role in
conducting oversight of the Executive Branch. If confirmed, I
would work with colleagues in HUD's Office of Congressional and
Intergovernmental Relations to ensure HUD responds to
Congressional requests for information, consistent with
appropriate law and regulations.
Q.18. If confirmed, do you intend to respond to information
requests differently depending on who is making the
Congressional information request (whether it's the Chair of
the Congressional Committee, the Ranking Member, or another
Member of Congress)? Please answer ``yes'' or ``no.'' If your
answer is ``yes,'' please explain.
A.18. No.
Q.19. Will you commit that, if confirmed, you will timely
respond to and fully comply with all information requests from
me? Please answer ``yes'' or ``no.'' If your answer is ``no,''
please explain.
A.19. If confirmed, I would ensure HUD responds to
Congressional requests for information, consistent with
appropriate law and regulations and will work with our Office
of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations to make sure
we provide responses to your inquiries in close coordination
with your staff.
Q.20. Will you commit that, if confirmed, you will make
yourself and any other HUD employee expeditiously available to
provide oral testimony (including but not limited to briefings,
hearings, and transcribed interviews) to the Committee on any
matter within its jurisdiction, upon the request of either the
Chairman or Ranking Member? Please answer ``yes'' or ``no.'' If
your answer is ``no,'' please explain why.
A.20. If confirmed, I will work to ensure HUD responds in a
timely manner to all to Congressional requests for information,
including from both Chairs and Ranking Members, consistent with
applicable law and regulations.
Q.21. Do you believe that HUD may assert any privileges or
other legal justifications to withhold information (whether
records or oral testimony) from Congress? Please answer ``yes''
or ``no.''
A.21. The decision to assert a privilege or other legal
justification to withhold information from Congress requires a
fact-specific inquiry and cannot be resolved in the abstract.
However, if confirmed, I will work to ensure that HUD addresses
all Congressional informational requests as openly and
transparently as possible, consistent with my obligation to my
client.
Q.22. If you answered ``yes'' to the preceding question, please
list every such privilege or other legal justification and
provide the legal basis for why you believe HUD may use such
privilege or legal justification to withhold information from
Congress.
A.22. The decision to assert a privilege or other legal
justification to withhold information from Congress requires a
fact-specific inquiry and cannot be resolved in the abstract.
However, if confirmed, I will work to ensure that HUD addresses
all Congressional informational requests as openly and
transparently as possible, consistent with my obligation to my
client.
Q.23. In an effort to be open and transparent with Congress and
the public, will you commit not to assert any such privilege or
legal justification against Congress that you listed above? If
not, why not? If so, please identify all such privileges or
legal justifications that you will commit to not assert against
Congress.
A.23. The decision to assert a privilege or other legal
justification to withhold information from Congress requires a
fact-specific inquiry and cannot be resolved in the abstract.
However, if confirmed, I will work to ensure that HUD addresses
all Congressional informational requests as openly and
transparently as possible, consistent with my obligation to my
client.
Q.24. Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV) Program--The law
governing noncitizen eligibility for emergency housing vouchers
(EHVs) makes clear that notwithstanding any other laws, only
some lawful noncitizens may receive EHVs and no exceptions are
made for unlawful aliens. \1\ A related law limiting
eligibility for other housing programs to lawful noncitizens
does provide exceptions for certain short-term shelter programs
when assistance is not conditioned on income. \2\ However, the
amount of assistance through the EHV program is conditioned on
the applicant's income and the program is not short-term. Given
that Congress knew how to make exceptions to citizenship
eligibility requirements for homelessness programs and chose
not to extend those exceptions for voucher programs, do you
feel HUD's justification of its recent waiver requiring
verification of eligible immigration status before admitting
people into the EHV program is sufficient?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 42 U.S.C. 1436a.
\2\ 8 U.S.C. 1611(b)(1)(D).
A.24. HUD's recent policy implementing EHV did not waive the
law governing noncitizen eligibility and PHAs remain
responsible for ensuring that the vouchers are only provided to
eligible applicants. In recognition that eligible applicants
experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault, and human
trafficking during the COVID-19 pandemic may have particular
difficulty timely obtaining certain proof of eligibility, HUD
made available to PHAs the option to have additional time to
collect the necessary documentation.
HUD takes seriously our responsibility to implement this
and all programs in full accordance with laws and statutes. If
confirmed, I will ensure that program flexibilities are
extended in a way that complies with applicable statutes and
regulations.
Q.25. Collaboration With HUD's Office of Inspector General
(OIG)--Please provide your philosophy on how HUD will support
and address OIG audits and investigations, if you are
confirmed.
A.25. Although management responses to OIG audits are typically
led by the program offices audited, the Office of General
Counsel (OGC) plays an important role in helping our clients
respond and ensuring that responses are legally sufficient. In
addition, OGC often liaises with counsel for OIG to attempt to
resolve disputes between our respective clients prior to
elevation to the Deputy Secretary.
I am proud of the close relationship that I was able to
develop with OIG in my prior tenure at HUD. The success of that
collaboration was confirmed when OIG granted me the HUD-OIG
Eagle Award for Outstanding Partnership. If confirmed, I would
work to build that same rapport and work closely to resolve
audits in support of OIG's mission of reducing and eliminating
waste, fraud, and abuse in HUD programs.
Q.26. In 2020, HUD-OIG determined that for the last 11 years,
HUD has failed to submit an annual report to Congress required
by law on troubled PHAs. \3\ Will you commit to transmitting
this report this year as required by law?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ 42 U.S.C. 1437d(j)(5); HUD-OIG, 2019-OE-0001 ``HUD Has Not
Referred Troubled Public Housing Agencies as the Law and Regulations
Require'' 10 (Feb. 4, 2020), available at https://www.hudoig.gov/sites/
default/files/2020-02/2019-OE-0001.pdf.
A.26. Yes. Pursuant to section 6(j)(5) of the United States
Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437d(j)(5)), HUD submitted an
overview of troubled PHAs in Fiscal Year 2019 to Congress on
August 25, 2020. The overview of troubled PHAs for Fiscal Year
2020 is currently in departmental clearance. If confirmed, I
would look into this matter and seek to ascertain ways to
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
improve the reporting process.
Q.27. HUD measures the performance of PHAs across a number of
indicators to ensure that units are decent, safe, sanitary, and
in good repair. After compiling scores for each indicator into
an overall score, the PHA receives a performance designation.
\4\ HUD-OIG determined that a number of PHAs that received a
``troubled performer'' designation remained troubled for longer
than two years, after which time they should have been referred
to the HUD Assistant Secretary for takeover. HUD-OIG determined
that when ``[the HUD Office of Public and Indian Housing] does
not refer a troubled PHA to the Assistant Secretary after the
maximum 2-year recovery period, a PHA could remain troubled for
a period beyond that maximum 2-year period while conditions
stagnate or deteriorate.'' \5\ Will you ensure that HUD's
process for referring troubled PHAs to the HUD Assistant
Secretary for takeover by HUD would be consistent with the law
and regulations as identified by HUD-OIG?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ 24 CFR 902.11(d).
\5\ HUD-OIG, 2019-OE-0001 ``HUD Has Not Referred Troubled Public
Housing Agencies as the Law and Regulations Require'' 5.
A.27. I take very seriously all findings and determinations
made by the HUD-OIG. If confirmed, I will work with the
relevant program officials to ensure that HUD's handling of
PHAs designated ``troubled performer'' is in accordance with
applicable laws and regulations.
------
RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS OF SENATOR TILLIS
FROM DAMON Y. SMITH
Q.1. Recently, the Department issued guidance which permits
officials to issue emergency housing vouchers (EHV) to
individuals without first providing a Social Security number.
This policy risks inviting fraud by illegal immigrants.
What action is HUD taking to ensure that American citizens,
and not illegal immigrants, receive assistance? What measures
are in place to prevent illegal immigrants from violating
Federal law and taking advantage of EHV assistance?
A.1. HUD's recent policy implementing EHV did not waive the law
governing noncitizen eligibility and PHAs remain responsible
for ensuring that the vouchers are only provided to eligible
applicants. In recognition that eligible applicants
experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault, and human
trafficking during the COVID-19 pandemic may have particular
difficulty timely obtaining certain proof of eligibility, HUD
made available to PHAs the option to have additional time to
collect the necessary documentation.
HUD takes seriously our responsibility to implement this
and all programs in full accordance with laws and statutes. If
confirmed, I will ensure that program flexibilities are
extended in a way that complies with applicable statutes and
regulations.
Q.2. How will the agency ensure that American taxpayer dollars
are repaid, if and when illegal immigrants unlawfully receive
EHV assistance due to this policy?
A.2. If confirmed, I will direct my Program Enforcement counsel
and the Departmental Enforcement Center to work closely with
the program office and HUD-OIG to ensure that HUD's response to
this scenario or any other that may occur in the implementation
of EHVs is in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
Q.3. I sent a letter on June 11 to the Department to raise my
concerns about this policy, and requested a response no later
than July 12. Can you please provide an update on the status of
this letter, and when I should expect to receive a response?
A.3. The letter is being processed by the Department. My
colleagues in the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental
Relations have informed me that they provided an update to your
office.
[all]