[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 36 (Thursday, March 10, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H1676]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  TERMINATING MORTGAGE RELIEF PROGRAMS

  (Ms. BASS of California asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Ms. BASS of California. Mr. Speaker, California was ground zero of 
the foreclosure crisis. At one point, 40 percent of all foreclosures 
nationwide were concentrated in the State of California. Today in 
California, nearly one in eight homes is in foreclosure. By far the 
majority of my constituents who walk through the door have received 
foreclosure notices or are on the brink of foreclosure. They have been 
shunned by the banks and have turned to my office and the Federal 
Government for help.
  Mr. Speaker, the two programs on the Republican chopping block this 
week haven't even been fully implemented: the Emergency Mortgage Relief 
Program and the FHA Refinance Program. The Emergency Relief Program 
provides no-interest loans to those who lost their jobs, which is the 
main reason homeowners fall behind in their mortgage payments.
  Not only does this response from the majority ignore the basic 
economic principle that the housing sector is a key component to 
economic recovery; it also comes without any alternative to reduce 
foreclosures.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support struggling homeowners 
and vote against H.R. 830 and H.R. 836.

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