[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 72 (Friday, June 10, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 10, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                        MORE REGULATORY REDTAPE

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                          HON. JAMES M. TALENT

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, June 10, 1994

  Mr. TALENT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about yet another 
regulatory burden which some would like to place on financial 
institutions. Several members of the Banking Committee plan to offer an 
amendment to H.R. 3838, the Housing and Community Development Act of 
1994, which would require a licensed or certified appraiser to appraise 
any loan of $250,000 or less.
  The authors of this amendment would serve only to increase the costs 
of real estate transactions for mid- and lower-income borrowers and 
place greater regulatory burdens on financial institutions. This 
appraisal amendment flies in the face of everything that administration 
and Congress have been trying to do to cut regulatory redtape and to 
end the credit crunch.
  Just 2 years ago, Congress authorized the banking regulators to raise 
the level of real estate transactions below which a licensed or 
certified appraiser need not be employed as long as there were no 
threats to the safety and soundness of financial institutions by such 
action. Just last year, as an integral part of this plan to reduce the 
credit crunch, President Clinton directed bank regulators to raise 
appraisal thresholds if there were no safety and soundness 
considerations. As a result, all bank regulators have implemented a 
rule to increase appraisal thresholds from $100,000 to $250,000.
  The proposed appraisal amendment would essentially reverse the action 
just taken by regulators to help bring the credit crunch to an end. Mr. 
Speaker, I urge my colleagues on the Banking Committee to vote against 
this amendment. It would significantly increase costs to borrowers and 
place a greater regulatory burden on financial institutions without any 
corresponding benefit for consumers.

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