The HR 1461 fight is on in the House
See our previous item for today's earlier updates on HR 1461, the much-discussed GSE's bill that would create a new regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The bill contains a big affordable housing fund and the question today is whether it will pass the House with anti-voter-registration compromise language that would force nonprofit organizations -- assuredly including nonprofit housing developers -- to choose between accepting money from this fund and conducting nonpartisan voter registration as they are required to do under some state funding laws.
According to a blow-by-blow from OMB Watch, there was prolonged maneuvering earlier today over the rule for floor consideration of the bill, H. Res. 509, because it determined whether to allow consideration of Rep. Barney Frank's attempt to strike Rep. Oxley's "Manager's Amendment," which contains the anti-voter-registration language.
It ain't over. Watch this space.
[MORE: Per the updated House floor summary, the Oxley "Manager's Amendment" was offered at 1:51 p.m. and went into 20 minutes of debate... per OMB Watch, as of 2:11 p.m. they were still debating the Manager's Amendment... 2:13 p.m., House floor summary says Rep. Julia Carson, D-IN, offered an amendment and it went into 10 minutes of debate... as of 2:18 p.m., the House floor summary says two more amendments have been offered. Rep. Carson's amendment and further amendments by Reps. Davis and Leach address varying core regulatory aspects of the bill, not the affordable housing fund debate. The fur is flying so fast I'm just going to direct readers to the floor summary rather than type it all out again here... Floor summary says the Oxley Manager's Amendment -- apparently the one with the voter registration provisions -- has passed by recorded vote. It's Roll No. 541, should be available at this link soon... Amendments and debate continuing on the regulatory core of the bill... OMB Watch says that Manager's Amendment vote was close, at 210-205, and as of 3:15 Eastern time it's still not over: "The next step will be a vote on Rep. Frank's motion to recommit...." If anyone wants to follow live, C-Span has the debate in streaming video. Rep. Ron Paul's amendment to limit the ability of Fannie and Freddie and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board to borrow from the Treasury has been apparently defeated by voice vote but his request for a recorded vote has been postponed.... Brief debate on an amendment by Rep. Garrett, R-NJ, to block Fannie and Freddie from buying mortgages from more expensive homes... apparently defeated by voice vote, recorded vote to be postponed... Debate beginning on amendment by Rep. Loretta Sanchez re: alternative credit scoring... OK, the floor summary and C-Span as linked above are gonna have to keep you updated for a while. More here later when the Frank motion comes up...]
[4:56 p.m. Eastern time: per the C-Span feed, Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts, speaking hoarsely, has made his motion to recommit. The chair has had to repeatedly gavel for order. Rep. Frank says one member inadvertantly voted against his real intention, meaning the real Manager's Amendment vote earlier was an even closer 209-206. He asks that the Manager's Amdt be adopted intact except for two sections affecting housing grants: 1) that housing not be required to be the "primary purpose" of the recipient organization, as it would bar faith-based groups under the widely recognized religious injunction that Rep. Frank paraphrases as "thou shalt have no other primary purpose above Me," and 2) that while restrictions against electioneering or political endorsements would be retained, non-partisan voter registration and non-partisan GOTV would be permitted. He's presenting it as a question of "will democracy prevail in the House?"... Rep. Oxley, in rebuttal, says faith-based groups would not be barred, the intention is only to ensure the money is used only for housing and to bar its use for political activity... Rep. Baker, R-LA, speaking emotionally, elaborates on Oxley's rhetoric, saying the purpose of the restrictions is to ensure the money goes only to needed housing... Rep. Frank offers a brief rebuttal... loudly shouted voice votes sound evenly matched from here... it goes to a 15-minute recorded vote.]
According to a blow-by-blow from OMB Watch, there was prolonged maneuvering earlier today over the rule for floor consideration of the bill, H. Res. 509, because it determined whether to allow consideration of Rep. Barney Frank's attempt to strike Rep. Oxley's "Manager's Amendment," which contains the anti-voter-registration language.
It ain't over. Watch this space.
[MORE: Per the updated House floor summary, the Oxley "Manager's Amendment" was offered at 1:51 p.m. and went into 20 minutes of debate... per OMB Watch, as of 2:11 p.m. they were still debating the Manager's Amendment... 2:13 p.m., House floor summary says Rep. Julia Carson, D-IN, offered an amendment and it went into 10 minutes of debate... as of 2:18 p.m., the House floor summary says two more amendments have been offered. Rep. Carson's amendment and further amendments by Reps. Davis and Leach address varying core regulatory aspects of the bill, not the affordable housing fund debate. The fur is flying so fast I'm just going to direct readers to the floor summary rather than type it all out again here... Floor summary says the Oxley Manager's Amendment -- apparently the one with the voter registration provisions -- has passed by recorded vote. It's Roll No. 541, should be available at this link soon... Amendments and debate continuing on the regulatory core of the bill... OMB Watch says that Manager's Amendment vote was close, at 210-205, and as of 3:15 Eastern time it's still not over: "The next step will be a vote on Rep. Frank's motion to recommit...." If anyone wants to follow live, C-Span has the debate in streaming video. Rep. Ron Paul's amendment to limit the ability of Fannie and Freddie and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board to borrow from the Treasury has been apparently defeated by voice vote but his request for a recorded vote has been postponed.... Brief debate on an amendment by Rep. Garrett, R-NJ, to block Fannie and Freddie from buying mortgages from more expensive homes... apparently defeated by voice vote, recorded vote to be postponed... Debate beginning on amendment by Rep. Loretta Sanchez re: alternative credit scoring... OK, the floor summary and C-Span as linked above are gonna have to keep you updated for a while. More here later when the Frank motion comes up...]
[4:56 p.m. Eastern time: per the C-Span feed, Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts, speaking hoarsely, has made his motion to recommit. The chair has had to repeatedly gavel for order. Rep. Frank says one member inadvertantly voted against his real intention, meaning the real Manager's Amendment vote earlier was an even closer 209-206. He asks that the Manager's Amdt be adopted intact except for two sections affecting housing grants: 1) that housing not be required to be the "primary purpose" of the recipient organization, as it would bar faith-based groups under the widely recognized religious injunction that Rep. Frank paraphrases as "thou shalt have no other primary purpose above Me," and 2) that while restrictions against electioneering or political endorsements would be retained, non-partisan voter registration and non-partisan GOTV would be permitted. He's presenting it as a question of "will democracy prevail in the House?"... Rep. Oxley, in rebuttal, says faith-based groups would not be barred, the intention is only to ensure the money is used only for housing and to bar its use for political activity... Rep. Baker, R-LA, speaking emotionally, elaborates on Oxley's rhetoric, saying the purpose of the restrictions is to ensure the money goes only to needed housing... Rep. Frank offers a brief rebuttal... loudly shouted voice votes sound evenly matched from here... it goes to a 15-minute recorded vote.]
posted by Martha Bridegam at 10:51 AM
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