House markup postponed after Waters again tests positive for COVID

WASHINGTON — The House Financial Services Committee postponed a scheduled markup session Tuesday after the Democratic chair tested positive for COVID-19 for the second time this spring.

The session, originally slated to begin Tuesday morning, was postponed via email at noon Eastern Time. Lawmakers had been scheduled to discuss bills that would fund housing initiatives, limit the use of industrial loan company charters and introduce new limits on banks’ ability to collect overdraft fees.

Shortly after 1 p.m. ET, the committee announced that Chair Maxine Waters, D-Calif., had tested positive for COVID-19. In a statement, Waters said that she was experiencing no symptoms: “I am feeling fine and resting at home,” she said.

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

It was the second time in less than two months that Waters, 83, has tested positive. Her last positive test came in April, when much of the Democratic Party’s leadership tested positive.

A total of 12 bills, several of which focus on housing affordability and access, had been set to be discussed Tuesday.

One bill, submitted by Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, would increase funding for the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Fair Housing Initiatives Program and introduce grants to study housing discrimination. Another bill, sponsored by Waters, would authorize $100 billion for a new HUD program to fund down payments by first-generation home buyers.

Beyond housing, the committee would have discussed a number of bills that would impact the banking industry. One measure, sponsored by Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García, D-Ill., would close the so-called regulatory loophole that allows industrial loan company banks to be owned by commercial companies, rather than bank holding companies.

Politics and policy

Lawmakers spar over government intervention in overdraft

Democrats at a hearing on Capitol Hill contended overdraft fees hurt low-income consumers and should be reined in — with Rep. Maxine Waters proposing to make larger banks offer an account without such charges. Yet Republicans said eliminating the fees would drive some consumers toward predatory lenders and away from small banks.

By Brendan Pedersen

March 31

Another bill, sponsored by Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., would introduce new limits on banks’ use of overdraft fees, including by placing a monthly cap on the number of times such fees can be charged to customers. A bill sponsored by Rep. Al Lawson, D-Fla., would extend some provisions of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to cover small-business lending.

The committee has not announced a new time for the markup.