On May 25, NLIHC President and CEO Sheila Crowley will testify in support of the National Housing Trust Fund (NHTF) at a hearing of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) titled, “Transparency, Transition and Taxpayer Protection: More Steps to End the GSE Bailout.” The hearing will be at 2 pm in room 2128 of the Rayburn House office building.

The hearing is focused on a package of seven bills circulated by Republican Members of the House Committee on Financial Services intended to dismantle Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. One of these bills, introduced by Representative Ed Royce (R-CA), would abolish the NHTF (see Memo, 5/13).  Only one of the bills has been introduced; the others, including Mr. Royce’s, do not yet have bill numbers.

Mr. Royce’s bill would also abolish the Capital Magnet Fund, which was created in the same legislation that created the National Housing Trust Fund.

The other witnesses are Edward DeMarco, Acting Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency; Anthony Sanders, Professor of Real Estate at George Mason University; David John, Senior Research Fellow at the Heritage Foundation; and Kelly William Cobb, Americans for Tax Reform.

The NHTF campaign issued a “Call to Action” on May 19 for people who live or work in districts represented by members of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises to call their Representatives to object to Mr. Royce’s bill.

To read the Call to Action, go to:  http://capwiz.com/nlihc/callalert/index.tt?alertid=47349526