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To: Jeremy Yohe
From: Diane Tomb, Chief Executive Officer
Subject: ALTA Advocacy Update - November 30, 2021
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I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. Being able to get together with friends and family after last year makes this holiday season even more meaningful.
Congress returns to Washington this week for a furious sprint to the end of the legislative year. There are three big items on the to-do list (especially for the Senate): 1) extending government funding and the debt ceiling, 2) passing the annual defense spending bill (the House version has the SECURE Notarization Act as a provision) and 3) considering President Biden’s social spending package, known as the Build Back Better Act.
First on the list is government spending. Congress has until the end of the week to avoid a shutdown. Separately, they have until the middle of December to raise the debt ceiling and avoid the potential for a default.
While most Congress watchers expect a stopgap measure extending both items for a short period of time, it is unclear how long the extension will run. Some Democratic leaders, like House Appropriations Committee Chair Rosa DeLauro, favor a shorter stopgap until early January to increase pressure on Republicans for a bipartisan spending package. Others—especially in the Senate Appropriations Committee—favor a longer deal through March to give negotiators a chance at a deal.
Before leaving town for Thanksgiving, the Senate started debate on the annual National Defense Authorization Act. Congress has not missed passing the annual defense spending bill for the past 60 years. In the House, ALTA’s lobbyists and our coalition partners were able to get the SECURE Notarization Act included as an amendment to the bill. While getting a similar amendment in the Senate version is not likely, the goal is to get negotiators to keep the amendment when they go to conference to work out the difference between the two versions.
For those of you in Illinois and Virginia, you can help in this effort by responding to our recent TAN alert. Check out the TAN alert here.
Once the Senate finishes its work on the continuing resolution and NDAA, it likely will turn to the social spending reconciliation bill. The House passed its version of the bill before the holiday; however, the House version includes several provisions that key swing senators, such as Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), have opposed in the past. Additionally, in the Senate, the bill will have to go through what’s colloquially called the “Byrd bath.” This is the process for the Senate parliamentarian to rule on each provision to determine if it meets the Senate’s rules for reconciliation. At its most simple, the Byrd rule does not allow provisions in a reconciliation bill where the impact on federal spending is merely incidental to the goals of the provision. An example of this rule in action was the parliamentarian ruling against the inclusion of the $15 an hour minimum wage increase in the American Rescue Plan. Democrats need total unity from all 50 of their members to pass the reconciliation bill.
This is a lot to accomplish in a normal month, but even more when you remember that the holidays will eat up a lot of time. However, as the saying goes, nothing is a greater motivator of productivity than a deadline.
White House Nominates Powell for Second Term as Fed Chair, Brainard for Vice Chair
Last Monday, President Biden announced his nomination of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for a second term. The move was seen as an attempt to promote stability and continuity at the central bank as they start the process of unwinding monetary policy and asset purchases made during the pandemic. The move also was seen as a partial rebuke of progressives who opposed Powell because he was not focused on moving Fed policy to address climate change.
However, in a nod to those progressives, President Biden also announced the nomination of current Fed member Lael Brainard for vice chair. In this role, Brainard will oversee the Fed’s regulatory agenda and supervision of large banks. She is expected to emphasize climate-related risks and the development of a modernized Community Reinvestment Act framework.
While the Senate agenda is full in December, they are expected to move quickly to hold nomination hearings for Powell and Brainard. Additionally, President Biden will have the chance to fill three more Federal Reserve Board seats in the coming months.
Ginnie Mae to Allow E-signatures, RON on Loan Mods
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ginnie Mae announced it would permit the use of e-signatures and remote online notarization (RON) for loan modification agreements on paper mortgages.
According to the memorandum, the policy is effective immediately. All approved Ginnie Mae Issuers are permitted to use e-signatures when executing loan modification agreements provided that:
- The promissory note is a paper promissory note bearing a wet signature
- The electronically signed loan modification agreement complies with the recording jurisdiction’s recordation requirements
- The e-closing platform or other system(s) the Issuer uses to obtain and maintain borrowers’ electronic signatures on the loan modification agreement must follow the regulation guidelines, listed on Ginnie Mae’s website
- The electronically signed loan modification agreement is delivered to the Document Custodian in hard copy or via electronic transmission, bearing evidence of recordation.
Additionally, Ginnie Mae is allowing the use of RON for loan modification agreements subject to requirements outlined in the Digital Collateral Program Guide.
House Financial Services Committee Announces December Hearings
Before the holiday, Chair Maxine Waters (D-CA) announced the following schedule of hearings for the House Committee on Financial Services:
- Dec. 1 at 10 a.m. ET: The full committee will convene for a hybrid hearing entitled, “Oversight of the Treasury Department’s and Federal Reserve’s Pandemic Response.”
- Dec. 7 at 10 a.m. ET: The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will convene for a hybrid hearing entitled, “Ensuring Equitable Delivery of Disaster Benefits to Vulnerable Communities and Peoples: An Examination of GAO’s Findings of the CDBG Program.”
- Dec. 8 at 10 a.m. ET: The full committee will convene for a hybrid hearing entitled, “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Understanding the Challenges and Benefits of Financial Innovation in the United States.”
- Dec. 9 at 11 a.m. ET: The Subcommittee on Diversity and Inclusion will convene for a hybrid hearing entitled, “A Review of Diversity and Inclusion Performance at America’s Large Investment Firms.”
All hearings are livestreamed here.
Digital Closing Boot Camps Feature All-New Content
Go digital with the ALTA, MBA & MISMO Digital Closing & eMortgage Boot Camps! Right now, you can take advantage of our BOGO offer and bring a colleague for free when you register. This is your opportunity to have all of your questions answered as our industry navigates unprecedented shifts. You have two chances to attend for your ultimate convenience.
Your first opportunity to attend Boot Camp is Dec. 6-7 in San Antonio, Texas. (Following this Boot Camp, the Texas Land Title Association [TLTA] will be hosting its 31st Annual Robert C. Sneed Texas Land Title Institute from Dec. 9-10. For more information on the TLTA event, visit tlta.com.)
If that time or place doesn’t work with your schedule, you have one more chance: The next Boot Camp will be held Jan. 13-14, 2022, in Clearwater, Fla. The Early Bird rate for our second Boot Camp expires Dec. 1. Register today and save $100!
Featuring all-new content: We offer a wide selection of technology-focused education sessions to help put you on the right path, including:
- WIIFM: Monetizing Digital Transformation
Session brought to you by Notarize.
Leveraging change to improve your internal processes and expand your market share is business 101! During this session, we will discuss how to get the most out of your organization’s digital adoption. Find out how to maximize your ROI as you implement digital closings and eMortgages.
- We Need to Talk
Session brought to you by SimpleNexus.
Believe it or not, one of the biggest hurdles to digital adoptions is communication. Strong communication practices and development of healthy feedback loops with industry partners, vendors and consumers are guaranteed to take your digital efforts to the next level.
Digital Closing Boot Camps are designed to inspire you to energize customer experiences as well as your company’s operational efficiencies. As an attendee, you will have the opportunity to mix with lenders and title professionals across the country. You also will get first-hand access to innovative technology solutions that will boost your results!
Join us at Boot Camp and get the blueprint for going digital.
Learn More
I hope this ALTA Advocacy Update is useful to your work this week. Your comments and questions are always welcome. I can be reached at dtomb@alta.org.
Best regards,
Diane Tomb
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