mr. speaker , i rise today in opposition to the rule , house resolution 509 . 
the federal housing finance reform act as reported by the committee on financial services is a strong bipartisan effort . 
it represents several years of work that will ensure the safety and soundness of the government-sponsored entities , helping working americans achieve the dream of homeownership . 
unfortunately , this rule has a potential to undercut the committee 's fine effort and may severely undermine critical gse reform . 
the availability of affordable housing keeps our communities strong . 
so wisely , the committee bill includes a fund to build and preserve affordable housing and , i would add , support these activities at no cost to the federal government . 
unfortunately , the manager 's amendment mars this fund by forcing nonprofit , affordable housing groups to make a choice . 
they can work to bring affordable housing to working families , or they can register voters in the most nonpartisan of ways ; but they can not do both , not even to drive an elderly person to the polls . 
over 60 national organizations , many of them faith-based , such as the u.s. conference of catholic bishops , the episcopal church , the presbyterian church , have come out opposing this provision . 
these organizations represent the mainstream values of this nation , and their efforts should not be hindered by roll-backs in these constitutionally protected rights . 
i urge my colleagues to maintain the broadly supported language that came out of the committee on financial services by rejecting the rule and the manager 's amendment . 
this rule also provides for consideration of another amendment worthy of a `` no '' vote . 
i am referring to the measure by the gentleman from new jersey ( mr. garrett ) xz4001450 that would strike the bill 's conforming loan limit provision . 
like many other metropolitan locations , my constituents in sacramento face escalating housing prices that are making it harder and harder for working families to achieve the dream of homeownership : firefighters police officers , the teachers in our schools . 
they deserve to live in the same communities they work in . 
increasing the conforming loan limit would bring fairness to the housing market by giving working families in more expensive parts of the country the same opportunity as everyone else to own their own home . 
once again , this commonsense provision was included in the bipartisan committee bill , and so i urge my colleagues to reject the garrett amendment . 
in closing , i reiterate to my colleagues the importance of maintaining the bipartisan version of h.r. 1461 that came out of the committee . 
vote no on this rule which will tar the affordable housing fund without giving the majority an opportunity to vote on it . 
