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Federal Housing Finance Agency Administrator Mark Calabria testifies on Capitol Hill during a panel hearing on “Housing Finance Reform: Next Steps” in Washington, DC, September 10, 2019.
Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images
The Biden administration will replace the leader of the massive US housing finance agency in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling that its current structure is unconstitutional.
The White House is moving forward to replace Mark Calabria as head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, an administration official told CNBC.
The official said that in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling, President Joe Biden will seek a new FHFA chief that better reflects the administration’s values.
The decision to impeach Calabria became clear after the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 on Wednesday that the housing agency should be more accountable to the Oval Office. Until Wednesday’s ruling, an FHFA director can only be removed by the president for “cause.”
Similar to a similar decision last year on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Wednesday’s court ruling will give Biden and future presidents the power to impeach the agency’s chief at any time.
Later on Wednesday, Calabria acknowledged the Supreme Court’s decision and wished his successor well.
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“I respect the Supreme Court’s decision and the president’s authority to remove the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. It has been a lifetime honor to serve as the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency alongside world-class staff,” he said in a statement posted on the FHFA website.
“I wish my successor all the best in fixing the remaining flaws in the housing finance system in order to preserve home ownership opportunities for all Americans,” he added.
As a member of the Trump era, Calabria spent most of his time at the helm of the FHFA trying to end the 12 years of Fannie and Freddy’s government control. Despite his efforts, the libertarian economist failed to lay out an attractive plan for former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on how best to organize such a complex and risky extraction.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration is not interested in ceding housing authority to private parties because it is working to address a variety of priorities, such as the racial home ownership gap.
“The FHFA has the important task of overseeing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as well as the Federal Housing Loan Bank system,” the White House official said. “It is critical that the agency implements the department’s housing policies.”
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