Congress OK's mortgage fraud measure
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WASHINGTON - Congress sent the president a bill yesterday to clamp down on mortgage fraud and set up a $5 million independent commission to investigate the cause of the worldwide financial meltdown.
President Obama is expected to sign the legislation, which received broad bipartisan support. The House agreed yesterday to a Senate version of the bill by a 338-52 vote.
Obama and other supporters say the bill's estimated cost of some $265 million a year will more than pay for itself because of the fines and penalties that would result from increased government oversight. "No one should want to see those who engaged in mortgage fraud escape accountability," said Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat who cosponsored the bill.
The money is to hire about 160 special FBI agents and more than 200 support staff, including forensic analysts. Currently, the FBI has fewer than 250 special agents assigned to mortgage fraud cases, despite caseloads that have more than doubled in the past three years. The Justice Department could hire 200 more prosecutors and civil enforcement attorneys, along with 100 support staff.
The bill also would establish a "financial markets commission" to "examine all causes" of the economic crisis. The panel will focus on more than 20 areas, including how the government failed to protect investors and the role financial fraud may have played in the meltdown.
