Washington, DC – May 6, 2009 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the Finance and Budget Committees, released the following statement after supporting the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, which passed the Senate today by a vote of 91-5.
“Throughout the economic downturn, I have advocated for Congress to fix housing first. The Helping Families Save Their Homes Act will help Texas homeowners meet today’s economic challenges. This legislation will protect the bank deposits held by Texans in financial institutions, including community banks and credit unions. It also increases transparency and oversight of TARP to help protect taxpayers’ money. Notably absent from this bill is the ‘cram down’ provision Democrat leaders attempted to add that would lead to higher interest rates, but was rejected by a bipartisan majority of Senators,” Sen. Cornyn said.
Background
Highlights of the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act:
• Strengthens and Extends Protection of Bank Deposits for Americans – Temporarily extends the increase in the federal deposit insurance coverage for bank and credit union accounts held by working families and small businesses.
• Increase Transparency and Oversight of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) – Provides the Government Accountability Office (GAO) with additional oversight tools and access to the books and record of firms that have received taxpayer money from TARP. This will help ensure that companies who receive assistance from taxpayers are required to cooperate with requests for information from the GAO about how they used the money.
Sen. Cornyn serves on the Finance, Judiciary and Budget Committees. He serves as the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee’s Immigration, Refugees and Border Security subcommittee. He served previously as Texas Attorney General, Texas Supreme Court Justice, and Bexar County District Judge.
