Date: 2016-09-07
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Chairman. I thank the distinguished ranking member of the subcommittee. I acknowledge the chairman of the full committee and. as well. the ranking member of the full committee. I am going to announce some breaking news. The Judiciary Committee gets along. We do a lot of good work together. I am looking forward to moving legislation dealing with a number of good policy suggestions and legislative initiatives involving the criminal justice system. I hope we can continue to work together. But I would raise concern as to this legislation. and I raise it in the context of all that this Congress has to do. I would also raise it in the context that the administration has indicated on this bill. H.R. 5063. the misnamed Stop Settlement Slush Fundstotally misnameda veto threat. We dont know whether anyone in the United States Senate. the other body. has any interest in this legislation at all. So in the meantime. there are any number of issues that should be addressed. My State of Texas is suffering under the threat of the Zika virus. The State of Florida is already in the eye of the storm. Puerto Rico. all of the Gulf States. maybe as far reaching as New York. That work needs to be done. The children of Flint are still asking us to respond to their concerns. The people of Baton Rouge. Louisiana. are still asking us to respond to the devastation that they are facing. Yet we deal with legislation that has totally misconstrued what has been done by the Department of Justice. It is important to note that it is not unconstitutional. There is no breach of the Constitution by way of what is going on here. First of all. it is not billions of dollars. It is minute in the course of helping individuals-$50 millionless than 1.1 percent of a total settlement of $23.5 billion. We know that the Congressional Research Service must be nonpartisan. All of us use the Congressional Research Service. I would venture to say that it is one of the most nonpartisan. independent entities that we have. He has indicated twice that the settlements are lawful. I said. Mr. Chairman. lawful. That is my concern with this misnamed legislation. This legislation hurts the vulnerable and victims. This legislation is not dealing with the crux of the issue. These are settlements engaging in agencies. These are not appropriated dollars. These are judgments within the context of the court. What is happening is that. out of the settlement. the agency is attempting to help people to help victims. Let me give you an example as it relates to HUD counseling. Just a few days ago. we saw mention of the ongoing concerns involving foreclosures. Many people may think that that is a thing of the past. but it is not. It is clearly something that is important to many people. Working with HUD counseling organizations. they are providing resources to help individuals get out of the pit of a foreclosure. It is well known that if individuals get counseling. they are nearly three times more likely to obtain a moneysaving mortgage modification. If an individual family all over this Nation was to get that. they would be more likely to receive a payment reduction of approximately $61 a month greater. on average. than noncounseled homeowners. They would be nearly twice as likely to get their mortgage back on track without a modification. Maybe. Mr. Chairman. a family of four. six. eight. or nine might not get kicked out of their house because of HUD counseling resources that have been given through a settlement. not forced through a settlement. not oppressed and overbearing. but through a settlement. through a legal justified settlement. What would our friends want us to do? To ignore these people. Counseling would bring about. if necessary. an ability to complete short sales faster than homeowners who dont work with housing counselors and about 60 percent less likely to redefault after curing a serious delinquency. That is the kind of agency that is being called some kind of slush fund. This is totally skewed into the needs of our citizens. and it is opposed by individuals who work with our citizensclean water action. individuals who work dealing with consumers. the National Council of La Raza. employment lawyers. the National Fair Housing Alliance. and the National Urban League. These are organizations that can document that they help people in their worst needs. Who is helping to assist in the Baton Rouge floods after FEMA? It will probably be a lot of nonprofits dealing with housing counseling. The Acting CHAIR . The time of the gentlewoman has expired.