WASHINGTON (MNI) – The following is the text of Federal Reserve
Governor Elizabeth Duke’s opening statement Thursday at a Public Hearing
on Potential Revisions to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act:
On behalf of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System,
Id like to welcome the participants to today’s hearing. Id also like
to express my appreciation to President Lockhart and our colleagues at
the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta for hosting us today.
I am pleased to be here at the first in a series of public hearings
regarding changes to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). The Board
has scheduled these hearings to assess the adequacy of the current
mortgage data requirements and examine the need to collect additional
data from lenders.
I would point out that since we began planning these hearings,
changes to the HMDA data requirements have been included in the
regulatory reform bill currently being considered by the Congress. We
look forward to hearing your comments regarding the implementation of
the changes specified in that legislation, as well as changes you might
recommend based on your experience.
The proposed legislation also would transfer authority for HMDA
rulemaking from the Board of Governors to the new Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau (CFPB). All information gleaned from these hearings
will inform our rulewriting work. When rulemaking authority transfers to
the CFPB, be assured that we will hand over the most current thinking
about changes to Regulation C.
Over the course of four public hearings, held throughout the
country, we will hear from key players in the home mortgage market:
lenders and other market participants, academics and researchers,
consumer advocacy and community development organizations, data experts,
regulators, and other public officials. Although they play different
roles, all share a common goal: to ensure that the mortgage market is
responsible, transparent, efficient, and serves the needs of consumers
and market participants alike.
Clearly, the recent mortgage crisis has highlighted the potential
ramifications of a mortgage market that is not functioning well. Data do
not create the market, but they do help us understand what is happening
in the market. HMDA data cannot solve all market problems, but the time
is ripe for reviewing and revising the data elements, standards, and
reporting formats. With the benefit of hindsight, we can now answer the
question: Do policymakers have adequate and reliable data sufficient to
assess market conditions and craft policy responses?
HMDA has three purposes. One purpose is to provide the public and
government officials with data that will help show whether lenders are
serving the housing needs of the neighborhoods and communities in which
they are located. A second is to help government officials target public
investment to promote private investment where it is needed. A third
purpose is to provide data to assist in identifying possible
discriminatory lending patterns and facilitate the enforcement of
anti-discrimination laws, such as the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.
Today’s hearing is intended to serve as a venue to: discuss whether
or not the 2002 revisions to Regulation C provided useful and accurate
information about the mortgage market; gather information that will help
assess the need for additional data elements or improvements; and
identify emerging issues in the mortgage market that may require
additional research. As I said earlier, we are also interested in any
comments on the implementation of the HMDA elements of the regulatory
reform legislation. We have gathered this morning an impressive array of
panelists representing a spectrum of vantage points. We look forward to
the comments of our panelists today and at the upcoming hearings in San
Francisco, Chicago, and Washington. This input, together with written
comments submitted from the public, will be carefully considered as we
consider changes to Regulation C.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
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