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Bill aiding California homeowners advances with key GOP Senate votes
By Judy Lin - jlin@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Story appeared in MAIN NEWS section, Page A4
A handful of Republican senators on Monday helped Democrats pass mortgage crisis legislation that gives more time and notice to troubled homeowners.
Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata's urgency legislation passed on a 28-10 vote. It now moves to the Assembly.
Senate Bill 1137 received four critical Republican votes, including one from an unlikely supporter – Sen. Jeff Denham, R-Atwater. He is facing a Perata-led recall in his district, which includes counties hit hard by the mortgage crisis – Merced, San Joaquin and Stanislaus.
Perata's bill says lenders can't file a notice of default against a borrower until 30 days after notifying them that the foreclosure process has begun.
The Democratic leader said an estimated 350,000 to 400,000 families are at risk of losing their homes in the next two years, mainly due to mortgage rates going up.
Perata removed a requirement that borrowers get face-to-face meeting time with lenders. At the request of the lending industry, he also limited the scope of the bill to loans made between January 2003 and December 2007.
Though the Senate Republican caucus opposed the bill, GOP Sens. Denham, Dave Cox of Sacramento, Abel Maldonado of Santa Maria and Mark Wyland of Del Mar also supported it.
Perata launched the recall of Denham after Denham refused to vote for the state budget last year.
Democrats blamed Denham for killing an earlier version of the mortgage bill on the Senate floor earlier this year. The recall effort's Web site argued that he "single-handedly killed urgency legislation that would have helped thousands of homeowners in danger of foreclosure."
A press release put out Monday by Denham's office credited the senator with urging the lending and mortgage industry to work with Perata on a solution after his first bill failed.
Denham said he didn't support the earlier bill because it would have driven lenders out of state, and unfairly penalized local banks and credit unions by requiring them to do more work even though they weren't responsible for the subprime lending crisis.
"I hope that once this bill passes, that we have as many town halls as we had on the previous bill to let people know we're supportive of making sure people don't lose their homes in the Central Valley," Denham said on the Senate floor Monday.
About the writer:
- Call Judy Lin, Bee Capitol Bureau, (916) 321-1115.
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