E 1116 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks May 24, 1995

million pieces of mail in 1989 alone. Excellence at the Shelter Island Heights Post Office

has become the norm, not the exception.

If one looks at the leadership of the Shelter

Island Heights Post Office it comes as no surprise that they have been able to maintain

such high standards of service. The Shelter Island Heights Post Office is led by its Postmaster Heather L. Reylek, who has helped

keep her post office unsurpassed by any other

in the Nation. She exemplifies all of the qualities that one would hope and expect for in a

community’s postmaster which include her excellent understanding of community issues

and how they affect her employees. Mr.

Speaker, I ask that you join me in congratulating Postmaster Reylek on the excellent job

she has done as postmaster of the Shelter Island Heights Post Office. With her as postmaster, the Shelter Island Heights community

can no doubt expect its high standards of

service to be continued.

On Saturday, June 3, 1995, the accomplishments of the Shelter Island Heights Post Office will be celebrated at the special pictorial

cancellation ceremony. At this ceremony, a

commemorative stamp of the ferry boat used

in the Shelter Island Heights community since

1904 will be revealed to help illustrate the history of this community. I can think of no better

way to celebrate these accomplishments than

with the issuance of this ferry boat stamp. I

ask the entire House of Representatives to

join with me in congratulating the Shelter Island Heights Post Office for a job well done.

TRIBUTE TO JOE SLABBINCK

fHON. DAVID E. BONIOR OF MICHIGAN

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, May 24, 1995

Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to

pay tribute to my good friend Joe Slabbinck

who is being honored this evening by the Clinton Township Goodfellows. Joe is being

named as a Goodfellow of the Year at a recognition dinner at the Fern Hill Country Club in

Clinton Township, MI.

Joe is currently a Board member and has

served in the past as president, vice-president,

and secretary of the Clinton Township Goodfellows. He is also currently the president of

the Tenth Congressional Democratic Committee. I have known Joe for many years and

have had the fortunate opportunity to work

with him on numerous occasions. Joe is a

nuts and bolts kind of guy who always makes

sure that projects stay on track. This is true in

his role as a Goodfellow and as a Democrat.

After 30 years at Chrysler, his success at

helping build world class quality cars is only

surpassed by his success in building organizations dedicated to meeting people’s needs. In

addition to the Goodfellows, Joe has devoted

time and energy to the Interfaith Center for

Racial Justice as well as the Volunteer Services Committee of the United Community

Service. His helpful attitude and relentless

drive ensure that organizational goals are always achieved.

Taking an active role in one’s community is

a responsibility we all share, but few fulfill. Joe

and his wife, Brenda, have dedicated much of

their lives to this endeavor. I deeply admire

their strong values and outstanding example

of civic involvement. Their time, talents, and

energy are appreciated by all of us. I thank

Joe and Brenda for their efforts and commend

them for their good work.

I applaud the Clinton Township Goodfellows

for recognizing Joe. He has provided outstanding leadership to the group and I know

he is proud to be honored by the members.

The devotion the Goodfellows and Joe have

displayed to their community is an inspiration.

Their contributions are many and they deserve

our gratitude for their compassion and work.

On behalf of the Clinton Township Goodfellows, I urge my colleagues to join me in saluting Joe Slabbinck.

INTRODUCTION OF THE FEDERAL

MORTGAGE INSURANCE CORfPORATION ACT OF 1995

HON. JERRY WELLER OF ILLINOIS

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, May 24, 1995

Mr. WELLER. Mr. Speaker, I stand here

today to introduce legislation that will allow

many Americans—the low and middle income,

first-time homebuyers and minorities—to embark on a venture that is inherently part of the

American dream. The bill I am introducing—

the Federal Mortgage Insurance Corporation

Act of 1995—will give a helping hand to those

who want to buy a home and make a better

life for themselves and their families. Owning

a home instills a sense of pride and responsibility and this bill will ensure that anyone in

our society—not just the wealthy—can afford

to buy a home here in the United States of

America.

The purpose of this legislation is to establish

a Government corporation to administer the

highly successful single-family mortgage insurance program currently under the management of the Federal Housing Administration at

the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Under a corporate structure, the single family program will be better equipped to

respond more efficiently to the needs of Americans in pursuit of the dream of home ownership.

The Corporation will be run by a Board of

Directors made up of experts in housing finance and leaders in community action whose

neighborhoods have been well served by FHA

over many years. The board will appoint a

President who will run the day to day operations like any other president. The act relieves the Corporation of burdensome civil

service restrictions and procurement requirements and provides paperwork reductions that

can hamper the productivity and progress of

the noblest of objectives that we undertake.

Also, like other corporations, the FMIC must

carry on the FHA single family program tradition of being a self-sufficient enterprise. Congress can only appropriate funds for the FMIC

to the extent that the Corporation has net income. Moreover, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight will oversee the capitalization of the FMIC funds as well as the

safety and soundness of its products.

The FMIC will also continue the successful

mission of the FHA only more efficiently. The

act will expand homeownership opportunities

for those segments of the market that need it

most: first time homebuyers, lower income

families, and minorities. The FMIC’s greater

flexibility will allow an even greater portion of

this market to gain sorely needed access to

capital and credit.

The Federal Mortgage Insurance Corporation act of 1995 will continue the successful

public-private partnership of FHA. More families will be able to share in American dream

of homeownership and it does not involve a

subsidy from the government. This is exactly

the kind of effective governance that the

American people expect and deserve.

My legislation carries forward the message

of the November 8 election: calling on us all

to streamline and reduce bureaucracy and to

do a better more efficient job, in this case promoting the basic American dream of homeownership.

AMENDMENTS ACT OF 1995

CREDIT OPPORTUNITY

f

HON. BILL McCOLLUM OF FLORIDA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, May 24, 1995

Mr. MCCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, today I am

introducing legislation to fundamentally reform

the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 and

to strengthen and clarify the enforcement of

fair lending laws. CRA is one of the worst examples of runaway federal regulation on the

books today. It is the number one regulatory

burden for our depository institutions and compliance costs exceed one billion dollars a year.

When originally adopted, CRA was designed to stop redlining. Redlining is the practice of lenders refusing to make loans because

of the racial composition of the neighborhood

surrounding the property securing the loan.

The enforcement of CRA quickly left its original purpose and turned toward credit allocation.

I strongly support efforts to eliminate redlining. The legislation I am introducing today includes redlining in the list of prohibited activities under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act

and the Fair Housing Act. This makes it clear

that we will not tolerate illegal discrimination in

lending.

In adopting CRA in 1977, Congress did not

anticipate there would be any additional burden on the banking industry. The Senate report accompanying CRA indicates that Congress believed that all the data needed to assure compliance was available and no new reporting or other paperwork would be required.

The enforcement of CRA by the federal

banking regulators grew in complexity and

burden throughout the years. In 1989, CRA

was amended to add provisions requiring written evaluations and specific grades for institutions. This added further burdens for the industry and set us on the precipice of credit allocation.

Recently, the Clinton Administration completed a two year effort to rewrite CRA regulations. The new rules vastly expand the paperwork burdens for most banks. In addition, they

complete the transition of CRA from prohibiting redlining to credit allocation. The new rules

require regulators to measure bank performance on the basis of the total dollar amount

and number of loans made to certain areas or

groups. This is credit allocation, pure and simple.