Jeb Hensarling

I have many concerns about the unintended consequences of U.S. regulators steamrolling ahead with the Dodd-Frank Title VII regulations.

When you yield unprecedented, unfettered, historic discretionary powers to the unelected bureaucracy, they will indeed use it.

Our community financial institutions are critical--critical to our small businesses, the job engine of America, and we have to do more to wring out some of the uncertainty in this system.

If we are not careful, Madam Chairwoman, we are going to wake up and see more failures and more consolidations of these community financial institutions.

We all know that too many of our financial institutions are fighting an uphill battle: the struggling economy; a monetary policy which is squeezing their profit margins; clearly, Dodd-Frank compliance; the Durbin language, which imposed…

So, Mr. Speaker, it really comes down to this: If you say you want to do this for a year, put your vote where your rhetoric is. If you are not willing to work over the holidays, admit to the American people you're not willing to work over…

One of the key ingredients to job creation is capital formation.

Our unemployment rate has remained at, near, or above 9 percent.

I think we did that in Sarbanes-Oxley, and we did it in a lot of things.

Members are expressly prohibited from 'using their official positions for personal gain.'

The American people have to have confidence that Members of Congress will not profit from their office.

The need to expressly prohibit this activity in statute cannot be overstated.

I think now the annual premium for a 30-year loan with a 95 percent LTV is 1.15.

You obviously have discretion, and I--one, let me say I appreciate the comments that you have made with respect to the conforming loan limits with respect to FHA and what I would view as mission creep.

FHA is likely a disaster in the making. If we are not careful, it may become Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the sequel.

We believe that frankly increasing tax revenues could hurt the economy. But within the context of a bipartisan negotiation with Democrats, clearly they are a reality.

We believe, frankly, that increasing tax revenues could hurt the economy, but within the context of a bipartisan negotiation with Democrats, clearly they are a reality.

I think if the SEC and the CFTC don't harmonize their rules, just to give you a real-world experience, you could have a credit default swap desk in our corporate area, where a single broker who brokers both credit default swaps and indices…

The lack of our job creation is resulting from, number one, a debt crisis.

I believe it has been so for 27 of the past 29 months.

It is absolutely critical that we do not inhibit the competitiveness of our U.S. institutions.

I am concerned that Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act is shaping up to be one of the worst provisions in a bill loaded with provisions that stifle economic growth.

I appreciate your testimony.

I guess the question I have is that there still appears to be so much lack of specificity and certainty within a lot of the community financial institutions I speak to.

But, Mr. Secretary, if I could, I am really curious, because I haven't seen the estimates of these outside economists, if you would be able to share them with me.