[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 169 (Tuesday, November 17, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1633]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             EQUITY IN GOVERNMENT COMPENSATION ACT OF 2015

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. EDWARD R. ROYCE

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 16, 2015

  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I strongly support the Equity in Government 
Compensation Act.
  This bill is based on legislation I authored which passed out of the 
House Financial Services Committee by a vote of 57 to 1 earlier this 
year. Similar text was approved by the Senate unanimously.
  This legislation will eliminate multi-million dollar salaries for the 
CEOs of taxpayer-bailed out and taxpayer-backed Fannie Mae and Freddie 
Mac, payouts that are an affront to the American people.
  To the naysayers that claim that the GSEs have already ``repaid'' the 
taxpayers for their bailouts, I asked Treasury Secretary Jack Lew about 
this very theory.
  He responded clearly that that ``the risk [for Fannie and Freddie] is 
being borne by taxpayers on an ongoing basis and the conservatorship is 
not over.''
  The quantifiable toll taken by the financial crisis and the GSEs' 
actions on the American people is staggering: over 4 million Americans 
lost their homes; 8.8 million Americans lost their jobs; and $19 2 
trillion was lost in household wealth.
  We have a duty and obligation to our constituents to protect them 
from a return to the GSEs' pre-crisis model of private gains and public 
losses.
  To those who discuss the need for GSE reform during debate of this 
bill, I say: I agree with you that it's time to put our housing system 
on a firmer foundation. I will put my record in support of reforming 
the GSEs up against that of any Member of Congress.
  The status quo of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac dominating 90% of the 
secondary mortgage market is unsustainable.
  My ultimate goal is still comprehensive housing finance reform that 
brings private capital into the system to eliminate the boom-and-bust 
cycle that wreaked havoc on the American economy; a task that takes on 
all the more urgency as Fannie and Freddie slip into the red and invite 
new taxpayer bailouts.
  However, this bill is about CEO pay today at the GSEs, not what we 
want them to look like tomorrow.
  Four million dollar a year salaries at the GSEs are simply symptoms 
of a disease. While we work on finding a cure, we should treat the 
patient. This bill will do just that.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas for his leadership on 
this issue as Chairman of the Financial Services Committee, the 
gentleman from New Jersey for his support on this bill, and the senior 
Senator from Louisiana for his quick action.

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