IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 728 

Condemning the decision of Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mark 

A. Calabria to remove the borrower’s preferred language question and 

the housing counseling question from the Universal Residential Loan 

Application. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 21, 2019 

Mr. GREEN of Texas (for himself, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. DAVID SCOTT

of Georgia, and Mr. MCGOVERN) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 

RESOLUTION 

Condemning the decision of Federal Housing Finance Agency 

Director Mark A. Calabria to remove the borrower’s preferred language question and the housing counseling 

question from the Universal Residential Loan Application. 

Whereas 8 percent of the United States population (25.1 million) is considered limited-English proficient (LEP); 

Whereas the preferred language question was designed only 

to better understand the unique challenges that LEP persons face throughout the home buying process; 

Whereas language barriers make it especially difficult to navigate the complex process of purchasing a home; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
2 

•HRES 728 IH 

Whereas over one-third of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) are LEP individuals; 

Whereas Spanish speakers in the United States account for 

64 percent of the United States LEP population; 

Whereas LEP home buyers make up a growing share of the 

mortgage market; 

Whereas communities with larger LEP populations have 

lower home ownership rates; 

Whereas every American, regardless of their race, color, gender, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, disability, LEP status, or gender identity should have a fair 

and equal opportunity to purchase a home in this country; 

Whereas the 2008 financial crisis caused countless borrowers 

to lose their homes because language barriers made it impossible to comprehend the terms of the loans some of 

them received; 

Whereas access to credit and home ownership is a struggle 

for far too many qualified home buyers who are new 

Americans or immigrants; 

Whereas AAPI and Hispanic home ownership continues to 

fall behind the national average due to a number of factors, including language barriers and misinformation 

about the home buying process; 

Whereas the Federal Housing Finance Agency should collect 

data on the preferred language of borrowers to better understand and address the growing needs of LEP home 

buyers; and 

Whereas a standardized question on the Universal Residential 

Loan Application (URLA) indicating the borrower’s preVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:06 Nov 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR728.IH HR728

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
3 

•HRES 728 IH 

ferred language neither obligates home buyers to respond 

nor mortgage originators and servicers to conduct communications in the preferred language of the borrower: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) condemns the decision of Federal Housing 

3 Finance Agency Director Mark A. Calabria to re4 move the preferred language question from the Uni5 versal Residential Loan Application; and 

6 (2) urges the Director to immediately reverse 

7 this arbitrary decision and restore the language pref8 erence question and the Homeownership Education 

9 and Housing Counseling question to the Universal 

10 Residential Loan Application. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS