The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held a hearing to consider a slate of nominations from President Joe Biden to fill roles on the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), the Department of Treasury, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Dr. Jared Bernstein, nominated to be chair of the CEA, has served as a member of the CEA since the beginning of the Biden administration, was the chief economist and economic advisor for then-Vice President Biden, deputy chief economist at the Department of Labor, a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and an economist at the Economic Policy Institute.
In welcoming Bernstein to the hearing, Committee Chair Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), pressed his Republican colleagues to support the nomination.
“While it is true members of this committee have often disagreed on policy, we have agreed the president is entitled to have his choice of CEA chair,” Brown said in his opening statement of the hearing. “That is why I voted for Kevin Hassett, President Trump’s choice to lead CEA in this committee and on the floor, and it’s why the Senate, in a bipartisan manner, overwhelmingly confirmed his nomination in a vote of 81-16.
“Last Congress, Ranking Member Toomey voted for Cecilia Rouse – and the Senate confirmed her nomination in a 95-4 vote.”
Dr. Ron Borzekowski has been nominated by the president to be director of Financial Research at the Department of Treasury.
As part of the Dodd-Frank Act, the Office of Financial Research was established to help identify and guard against risks that reach across the financial system, and to provide the Financial Stability Oversight Council and member agencies with the data they need to protect financial stability.
From 2011 to 2019, under both Democratic and Republican directors, Borzekowski served in various roles in the Office of Research at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). There, he helped support the bureau’s research and data efforts. Earlier in his career, he served as a senior economist at the Federal Reserve and as a deputy research director for the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission. Currently, he serves as the executive director of Yale’s Data-Intensive Social Science Center.
Solomon Greene is the president’s nominee to serve as assistant secretary for policy development and research. As the head of policy development and research, Greene will lead HUD’s research and provide data to inform Congress and the agency on relevant policy matters.
Since 2022, Greene has served as principal deputy assistant secretary for policy development and research at HUD. Prior to joining HUD, he served as a senior fellow at the Urban Institute, where he led research on housing and community development issues. Greene also previously served as senior advisor at HUD, and an adjunct professor at NYU’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.
David Uejio is nominated to serve as assistant sectary for fair housing and equal opportunity. In that role he will be responsible for overseeing the implementation and enforcement of laws that protect homeowners and renters from housing discrimination.
Uejio is currently the acting associate director for supervision, enforcement, and fair lending at CFPB. Previously, he served as the bureau’s acting director, acting chief of staff, and chief strategy officer.