SEC. 1391. PRIMACY OF FINANCIAL SAFETY AND SOUNDNESS FOR FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE BOARD.edit
Section 2A(a)(3) of the Federal Home Loan Bank Act (12 U.S.C. 1422a(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows:
``(3) DUTIES—
``(A) SAFETY AND SOUNDNESS— The primary duty of the Board shall be to ensure that the Federal Home Loan Banks operate in a financially safe and sound manner.
``(B) OTHER DUTIES— To the extent consistent with subparagraph (A), the duties of the Board shall also be—
``(i) to supervise the Federal Home Loan Banks;
``(ii) to ensure that the Federal Home Loan Banks carry out their housing finance mission; and
``(iii) to ensure that the Federal Home Loan Banks remain adequately capitalized and able to raise funds in the capital markets.´´.
SEC. 1392. ADVANCES UNDER FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK ACT.edit
(a) ADVANCES TO NONQUALIFIED THRIFT LENDER MEMBERS—
Section 10(e)(2) of the Federal Home Loan Bank Act (12 U.S.C. 1430(e)(2)) is amended by striking the second sentence and inserting the following new sentence: `The aggregate amount of the advances by the Federal Home Loan Bank System to members that are not qualified thrift lenders shall not exceed 30 percent of the total advances of the Federal Home Loan Bank System.´.
(1) in the first sentence, by inserting before `Each´ the following new subsection designation and heading: `(a) IN GENERAL— ´; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(b) EXCEPTION— An advance made to a State housing finance agency for the purpose of facilitating mortgage lending that benefits individuals and families that meet the income requirements set forth in section 142(d) or 143(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, need not be collateralized by a mortgage insured under title II of the National Housing Act or otherwise, if—
``(1) such advance otherwise meets the requirements of this subsection; and
``(2) such advance meets the requirements of section 10(a) of this Act, and any real estate collateral for such loan comprises single family or multifamily residential mortgages.´´.
SEC. 1393. STUDIES REGARDING FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK SYSTEM.edit
(a) IN GENERAL—
The Federal Housing Finance Board, the Comptroller General of the United States, the Director of the Congressional Budget Office, and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall each conduct a study analyzing and making appropriate recommendations with respect to the following topics:
(1) The appropriate capital standards for the Federal Home Loan Bank System.
(2) The relationship between the capital standards for the Federal Home Loan Bank System and the capital standards under this title for the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation.
(3) The relationship between the capital standards for federally insured depository institutions and the capital standards under this title for the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation.
(4) The advantages and disadvantages of expanding credit products and services for member institutions of the Federal Home Loan Bank System, including a determination of the feasibility of Federal Home Loan Banks (A) purchasing housing-related assets from member institutions, (B) providing credit enhancements and other products to members in addition to making advances, and (C) making direct loans for housing construction.
(5) The advantages and disadvantages of expanding eligible collateral for advances to member institutions of the Federal Home Loan Bank System by removing the limits on the amount of housing-related assets that member institutions can use to collateralize advances.
(6) The advantages and disadvantages of further measures to expand the role of the Federal Home Loan Bank System as a support mechanism for community-based lenders and to reinforce the overall role of the System in housing finance.
(7) The advantages and disadvantages of measures to increase membership in, and increase the profitability of, the System by modifying—
(A) restrictions on membership and stock purchases of nonqualified thrift lenders;
(B) the overall advance limit imposed on the Federal Home Loan Bank System to nonqualified thrift lenders; and
(C) the membership requirement for qualified thrift lenders.
(8) The competitive effect of the mortgage activities of the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation on the home mortgage activities of federally insured depository institutions and the cost of such activities to such institutions, the Savings Association Insurance Fund, and the Resolution Trust Corporation.
(10) The extent to which a reduction in the number of Federal Home Loan Banks would reduce noninterest costs of the System.
(11) The impact that a reduction in the number of Federal Home Loan Banks would have on the effectiveness of affordable housing programs and community support programs under the Federal Home Loan Bank System.
(12) The impact that a reduction in the number of Federal Home Loan Banks would have on the availability of affordable housing in rural areas and the ability of small rural financial institutions to provide housing financing.
(13) The current and prospective impact of the Federal Home Loan Bank System on—
(A) the availability and affordability of housing for low- and moderate-income households; and
(B) the relative availability of housing credit across geographic areas, with particular regard to differences depending on whether properties are inside or outside of central cities.
Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Housing Finance Board, the Comptroller General, the Director of the Congressional Budget Office, and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall each submit to the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate a report on the studies required under subsection (a) containing any recommendations for legislative action based on the results of the studies.
(c) COMMENTS—
The Secretary of the Treasury, the Director of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, and the Federal National Mortgage Association shall each submit to the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate any recommendations and opinions regarding the studies under subsection (a), to the extent that the recommendations and views of such officers and entities differ from the recommendations and opinions of the Federal Housing Finance Board, the Comptroller General, the Director of Congressional Budget Office, and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
(d) DEFINITION—
For purposes of this section, the term `housing-related assets´ means residential mortgages, residential mortgage-related securities, loans or loan participations secured by residential real estate, housing production loans, and warehouse lines of credit for residential mortgage banking activities.
SEC. 1394. REPORT OF FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK MEMBERS.edit
(a) IN GENERAL—
The Federal Home Loan Banks shall establish a committee to be known as the Study Committee. The Study Committee shall be comprised of 24 members, of whom 2 shall be elected by the Board of Directors of each Federal Home Loan Bank from among officers or directors of stockholder institutions of the Federal Home Loan Bank. Each Federal Home Loan Bank shall elect members to the Study Committee not later than 45 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b) STUDY AND REPORT—
The Study Committee referred to in subsection (a) shall conduct a study on the topics referred to in section 1391(a) and on the costs and benefits of consolidation of the Federal Home Loan Bank System. Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Study Committee shall submit a report to the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate, the Federal Housing Finance Board, and the presidents of the Federal Home Loan Banks on its findings, including any recommendations for legislative or administrative action, together with any minority views or recommendations.
SEC. 1395. REPORTS REGARDING CONSOLIDATION OF FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK SYSTEM.edit
Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Board of Directors of each Federal Home Loan Bank shall submit to the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate a report of the directors´ evaluation of the costs and benefits of consolidating the Federal Home Loan Bank System.
