House Financial Services Committee Chairman Spencer Bachus continued criticism Monday of the administration's delay in offering reforms for the government-sponsored enterprises.
The White House has taken heat for missing numerous deadlines in producing a proposal for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, most recently when it abandoned plans to have one out in January. The two mortgage giants have been in a federal conservatorship since the fall of 2008.
"It is clear the administration cannot make any tough choices required to protect taxpayers and end the bailout of Fannie and Freddie. Taxpayers do not need more empty promises for reform, they need a real plan to stop the administration and Treasury Department from throwing more taxpayer dollars down the Fannie and Freddie rathole," Bachus, an Alabama Republican, said in a press release.
The administration has said it will issue a proposal by mid-February, but most observers expect it will be an analysis weighing the pros and cons of various options rather than a hard and fast proposal.
Bachus, who is planning three hearings on the GSEs, said lawmakers will not wait for the White House to act. "GSE reform is a top priority for Republicans in this Congress," he said.
