Cortez Masto, Warren, Reed Lead Banking Democrats in Requesting FHFA Director Bill Pulte Appear Before Committee

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Senator Jack Reed (D-R.I.) led every Democratic member of the Senate Banking Committee in a letter to Chairman Tim Scott (R-S.C.) requesting that he call Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte before the Committee.

As evidence of the need for a committee hearing, the Senators write, "Since Director Pulte assumed his post in March, he has removed the majority of directors of both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and fired internal audit staff, made himself the chair of both boards (a move that appears to contradict federal law), and used his position to accuse four prominent public officials of mortgage fraud (reportedly circumventing longstanding criminal referral processes at the agency to do so)."

The Senators also noted Pulte's lack of response to multiple oversight requests throughout his tenure as FHFA Director. The Senators continued, "In addition, multiple members of the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee have sent letters to Director Pulte; he has, however, failed to answer members' oversight questions in a fulsome manner and ignored members' briefing requests. A hearing would provide him with the opportunity to answer those questions in person."

Their request follows the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) decision to launch an investigation into whether Pulte and other FHFA employees potentially misused federal authority and resources to publicly accuse prominent Democrats and President Donald Trump's perceived political enemies of mortgage fraud. The GAO agreed to launch this investigation at the urging of Senate Banking Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats.

Read the full letter here. Additional signatories include Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.).

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