I’ve spent my entire life fighting for working families, eighteen of those years spent in a pair of work boots as an Ironworker. And I’m proud to say that when I was elected to Congress, I never left my working class values behind. I know that families in our district are struggling. People tell me every day that they are working more, and receiving less. Wages are stagnant, costs are rising and Covid-19 has revealed to many what we already knew – people are just barely hanging on.
Stephen knows that today’s extreme levels of income and wealth inequality are bad for our people, our economy and our businesses. The top ten percent of Americans own more than the bottom 90 percent combined. As a senior member of the Financial Services Committee. Stephen knows that we have to create opportunities to strengthen and increase the middle class and make Wall Street work for a job-creating, productive economy.
At a time when many of the largest banks have shunned communities, Stephen is working to give people more safe banking options. As the Chairman of the FinTech (Financial Technology) Task Force he is working to put new technologies to use in a responsible way that protects consumers and small businesses, and increases options for the unbanked and the underbanked including empowering the US Postal Service to facilitate the delivery of basic banking services in underserved communities.
Stephen authored the Clarity In Credit Score Formation Act which passed the House in January 2020 to improve the accuracy of credit score models and ensure that consumer credit scores are fair and free is discriminatory practices. Over 40 million Americans have inaccurate information on their credit reports and this bill would help to ensure accuracy.
He helped to craft the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to create consumer protections, end government bail-outs of the financial system and introduce transparency and accountability for shadowy financial markets. And Stephen voted against the massive bank bail-out that rewarded unscrupulous banking executives and failed to hold any one of them accountable.
Knowing that coastal homeowners and businesses throughout the 8th were subject to egregious and unfair premium increases because of inaccurate FEMA flood maps, Stephen successfully championed meaningful relief. His work also added transparency and accountability to FEMA’s error prone mapping process.
He has worked with his colleagues on numerous bills to help working families succeed and has also co-sponsored legislation to assist struggling pension plans for Americans who face financial uncertainty at a time when they cannot return to work.
As your Congressman, Stephen will continue to fight financial fairness and security for all families in the 8th.