mr. chairman , the committee on financial services has studied the need to reform the regulation of housing government-sponsored enterprises for nearly 6 years . 
since convening our first government hearing on gse reform in march 2000 , we have examined these matters extensively . 
as the ranking democratic member on the subcommittee of jurisdiction , i have also had the opportunity to participate in more than 20 hearings and to hear scores of witnesses . 
the legislation to address these matters that the committee on financial services ultimately reported earlier this year was a very , very good piece of legislation . 
it would , as long as i have advocated , created a strong , world-class , independent regulatory for housing gses . 
the bill also received the overwhelming backing of my colleagues on the committee , passing by a vote of 65 to 5. while i still believe this base legislative package is a good bill , i am concerned about some of the amendments that we will debate today . 
for example , the manager 's amendment that we will shortly consider will add a number of new provisions that will severely restrict the ability of faith-based groups to participate in the new affordable housing fund created by this bill and to participate in our democracy . 
these changes are controversial , unconstitutional , and immoral . 
these revisions which were not previously debated in committee , which have generated considerable disagreement , deserve close scrutiny . 
because the rule does not allow a clean vote to remove these troubling provisions from the legislation , i must regretfully oppose this bill on final passage . 
beyond the concerns i have with the manager 's amendment , i have concerns about those amendments which would alter the delicate balance we crafted in committee to create a strong , world-class , and independent safety and soundness regulator for gses . 
these amendments , which i will oppose , would remove the treasury line of credit for the gses , impose capital standards based on competition rather than risk , create arbitrary limitations on gse portfolios for reasons other than safety and soundness , and alter provisions of the bill that will help middle-income families purchase homes in high-cost areas . 
still , there are also a number of good amendments which i will support , including my own amendment to restore the presidential and regulatory board appointment systems for the gses . 
i hope all of my colleagues will support this target amendment to retain an independent public voice on government-sponsored enterprise boards . 
this amendment also has the support of the national association of home builders and the national association of realtors . 
in closing , mr. chairman , while this bill has many admirable aspects , the process by which we have brought it to the floor is flawed . 
as a result , i will oppose this bill at the end of the day , but hope to work to improve the legislation as it moves on in the process . 
