Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I rise in support of my bill, H.R. 1443, the LGBTQ Business Equal Credit Enforcement and Investment Act. I want to thank Chairwoman Waters and Ranking Member McHenry for their support. As the ranking member noted, we did make concessions to address his concerns about the legislation. In the United States there are 1.4 million LGBTQ businesses, contributing more than $1.7 trillion to the American economy. We have a vested interest in sustaining and strengthening these businesses with equal access to credit, which is the beating heart of the American economy. As a former New York City Council member, I partnered with the National LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce to establish the Nation's largest municipal certification program for LGBTQ business enterprises, enabling those businesses to enjoy equal access to a $25 billion pool of government procurement. The legislation before us, H.R. 1443, builds on a foundation laid by several statutes and regulations. The Equal Credit Opportunity Act, most commonly known as ECOA, prohibits credit discrimination, including but not limited to sex discrimination. A new interpretive rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, CFPB, clarifies that ECOA's prohibition against sex discrimination applies to sexual orientation and gender identity.…”