[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 77 (Thursday, April 22, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21146-21147]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-9309]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[eDocket Number: TREAS-DO-2010-0001; eDocket Number: HUD-2010-0029]


Public Input on Reform of the Housing Finance System

AGENCIES: Office of the Undersecretary for Domestic Finance, Department 
of the Treasury; Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy 
Development and Research, HUD.

ACTION: Notice and Request for Information.

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SUMMARY: Consistent with the Obama Administration's commitment to 
openness and transparency and the President's Open Government 
Initiative, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) and the 
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) seek public input on 
establishing a more stable and sound housing finance system.

DATES: Comment Due Date: July 21, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding 
this notice according to the instructions for ``Electronic Submission 
of Comments'' below. All submissions must refer to the document title 
and one of the above docket numbers. Treasury and HUD encourage the 
early submission of comments.
    Electronic Submission of Comments. Interested persons must submit 
comments electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at 
http://www.regulations.gov. Electronic submission of comments allows 
the commenter maximum time to prepare and submit a comment, ensures 
timely receipt, and enables Treasury or HUD to make them available to 
the public. Comments submitted electronically through the http://www.regulations.gov Web site can be viewed by other commenters and 
interested members of the public. Commenters should follow the 
instructions provided on that site to submit comments electronically.

    Note:  To receive consideration as public comments, comments 
must be submitted through the method specified above. Again, all 
submissions must refer to the docket number and title of the notice.

    No Facsimile Comments. Facsimile (FAX) comments are not acceptable.
    Public Inspection of Public Comments. All properly submitted 
comments will be available for inspection and downloading at http://www.regulations.gov.
    Additional Instructions. Please note the number of the question to 
which you are responding at the top of each response. Though the 
responses will be screened for obscenities and appropriateness, in 
general comments received, including attachments and other supporting 
materials, are part of the public record and are immediately available 
to the public. Do not enclose any information in your comment or 
supporting materials that you consider confidential or inappropriate 
for public disclosure.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general inquiries, submission 
process questions or any additional information, please call 202-622-
7653. All responses to this Notice and Request for Information should 
be submitted via http://www.regulations.gov to ensure consideration.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Treasury and HUD seek public comment on the 
following questions:
    1. How should federal housing finance objectives be prioritized in 
the context of the broader objectives of housing policy? Commentary 
could address: Policy for sustainable homeownership; rental policy; 
balancing rental and ownership; how to account for regional 
differences; and affordability goals.
    2. What role should the federal government play in supporting a 
stable, well-functioning housing finance system and what risks, if any, 
should the federal government bear in meeting its housing finance 
objectives? Commentary could address: Level of government involvement 
and type of support provided; role of government

[[Page 21147]]

agencies; role of private vs. public capital; role of any explicit 
government guarantees; role of direct subsidies and other fiscal 
support and mechanisms to convey such support; monitoring and 
management of risks including how to balance the retention and 
distribution of risk; incentives to encourage appropriate alignment of 
risk bearing in the private sector; mechanisms for dealing with 
episodes of market stress; and how to promote market discipline.
    3. Should the government approach differ across different segments 
of the market, and if so, how? Commentary could address: 
Differentiation of approach based on mortgage size or other 
characteristics; rationale for integration or separation of functions 
related to the single-family and multi-family market; whether there 
should be an emphasis on supporting the production of subsidized 
multifamily housing; differentiation in mechanism to convey subsidies, 
if any.
    4. How should the current organization of the housing finance 
system be improved? Commentary could address: What aspects should be 
preserved, changed, eliminated or added; regulatory considerations; 
optimal general organizational design and market structure; capital 
market functions; sources of funding; mortgage origination, 
distribution and servicing; the role of the existing government-
sponsored enterprises; and the challenges of transitioning from the 
current system to a desired future system.
    5. How should the housing finance system support sound market 
practices? Commentary could address: Underwriting standards; how best 
to balance risk and access; and extent to which housing finance systems 
that reference certain standards and mortgage products contribute to 
this objective.
    6. What is the best way for the housing finance system to help 
ensure consumers are protected from unfair, abusive or deceptive 
practices? Commentary could address: Level of consumer protections and 
limitation; supervising agencies; specific restrictions; and role of 
consumer education.
    7. Do housing finance systems in other countries offer insights 
that can help inform U.S. reform choices?

    Dated: April 16, 2010.
Alastair Fitzpayne,
Acting Executive Secretary, Department of the Treasury.
James Parrott,
Counselor to the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban 
Development.
[FR Doc. 2010-9309 Filed 4-21-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-25-P; 4210-67-P