[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 39 (Thursday, March 5, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E559]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HELPING FAMILIES SAVE THEIR HOMES ACT OF 2009

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. NANCY PELOSI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 26, 2009

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1106) to 
     prevent mortgage foreclosures and enhance mortgage credit 
     availability:

  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chair, I thank Chairman Conyers and Chairman Frank 
for their strong leadership in bringing this much needed housing and 
bankruptcy legislation to the floor.
  The legislation is the result of the perseverance of many Members, 
especially Brad Miller, the original author of the legislation and Mr. 
Cohen of the Judiciary Committee.
  I also commend Zoe Lofgren, Ellen Tauscher, and Dennis Cardoza for 
their compromise that is reflected in the manager's amendment. They 
have worked diligently to make improvements to the bill to ensure that 
homeowners will avoid bankruptcy whenever possible by first and 
foremost providing homeowners to a workable and accessible loan 
modification process.


                            every 13 seconds

  As Chairwoman Lofgren has said, we have a foreclosure in America 
every 13 seconds.
  Every 13 seconds, a family is uprooted, their children are forced to 
switch schools, their biggest investment--their home--is boarded up, 
increasing blight and reducing property values.
  Each foreclosure represents nothing less than the end of an American 
Dream. But with this legislation--the Helping Families Save Their Homes 
Act--we can protect the American Dream and preserve it for America's 
families.


                       what the legislation does

  This legislation will reduce the number of foreclosures by providing 
incentives for loan modifications that will permit families to stay in 
their homes on a long term basis.
  It reforms the HOPE for Homeowners program to make it more workable 
for both homeowners and lenders.
  In addition to providing incentives to lenders and servicers, this 
legislation, thanks to improvements that Members have worked on, also 
provides important incentives to homeowners to work with lenders and 
servicers to modify loans and to avoid bankruptcy--a painful and 
intrusive process for families. For those who cannot be helped, the 
legislation permits existing home mortgages to be judicially modified 
under the Bankruptcy Code, similar to the treatment of other real 
estate such as investment properties.
  Finally, the legislation strengthens our financial system to foster 
the flow of credit necessary for home refinancing by making permanent 
the new $250,000 deposit insurance limit for Americans' accounts in 
banks and credit unions.


                            president's plan

  This legislation compliments the President's recently announced 
Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan, which will help up to 7 to 
9 million families restructure or refinance their mortgages to avoid 
foreclosure by refinancing or modifying their loans. Both the Obama 
plan and this legislation are long overdue steps to strengthen the 
housing market.


                responsibility of borrowers and lenders

  As we consider this legislation, we all agree on the principle that 
everyone bears a personal responsibility for their actions and their 
debts. This legislation upholds this principle.
  Lenders must also act in good faith, responsibly lend to qualified 
homeowners, and work with homeowners who are at-risk of foreclosure 
because that is in the interests of lenders, borrowers, neighborhoods, 
and our nation's economy.
  Yet, as 22 state Attorneys General recently noted, ``many servicers . 
. . remain unwilling or unable to act, even when their own economic 
interests dictate otherwise.''


                                 close

  When homeowners are unable to obtain relief, we must act to protect 
the American Dream of owning a home, to protect the neighborhoods 
ravaged by foreclosures, and to protect our economy, which has been 
ravaged by the decline of housing market.
  Unless we address our nation's foreclosure crisis, more Americans 
will lose their jobs, will not be able to send their kids to college, 
and see their retirements savings continue to decline and disappear.
  This bill helps homeowners, lenders, and neighbors. It is essential 
to our economic recovery. I urge my colleagues to take action today to 
stop foreclosures and help American families save their homes.

                          ____________________