It’s been three months since the Trump administration released its plan to end government control of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and Democratic lawmakers still have unanswered questions, Bloomberg News reported. In a yesterday letter, Senate Banking Committee Democrats put almost two dozen queries to the Treasury Department and Federal Housing Finance Agency, the companies’ regulator. Topics ranged from the potential impact releasing Fannie and Freddie will have on the trillions of dollars in mortgage securities that the companies backstop to whether housing costs will rise. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), Presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren and other Democrats who signed the letter said that their questions are crucial in assessing whether the administration’s proposals will ensure “housing access and affordability, and the continued success of the secondary mortgage market.” The lawmakers urged a “prompt response” to their letter, which reflects ongoing concerns that President Donald Trump might try to bypass Congress in freeing Fannie and Freddie. Treasury’s September plan suggested dozens of reforms to protect Fannie and Freddie from another housing crash, shrinking their dominant market shares and creating new entities to compete with the companies. But specific details, such as determining how much capital Fannie and Freddie will need to survive a financial crisis and how they will raise it, still need to be ironed out.
