Donovan to Testify Again on Refinancing Plan

WASHINGTON — Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan will testify before Congress next Tuesday regarding efforts to allow more Americans to refinance their mortgages.

Donovan's appearance will be his second visit to the Senate Banking Committee in less than three weeks. On April 26, he also answered senators' questions about mortgage refinancing proposals, though his prepared testimony focused on HUD's budget proposal.

At that hearing, Donovan endorsed a legislative proposal from Democratic Sens. Robert Menendez and Barbara Boxer, which would allow more homeowners to refinance mortgages owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Donovan also stated that he was hopeful that the Obama administration would introduce its own legislation for a broader refinancing initiative, which would go beyond Fannie and Freddie mortgages, within the next few weeks.

That legislation will be based on a framework that President Obama laid out in his State of the Union address in January. One sticking point has involved how to pay for the plan. Obama initially proposed imposing a tax on the largest U.S. banks, but Donovan said last week that the administration is open to other ways of financing the program.