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Speaking at the Scruggs Center Opening
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This past Saturday I joined with local officials, musicians, and residents of Cleveland County to celebrate the opening of the Earl Scruggs Center. While the rain forced the ceremony to move inside Central United Methodist Church, it was still a fantastic ceremony to honor a North Carolina legend. Over 500 people turned out for the event which celebrated Earl Scruggs life and paid tribute to his numerous contributions to bluegrass music. Read more about the event in the Shelby Star and also enjoy some photos from the event below:
Following the ceremony at Central United Methodist, I had the chance to visit the Scruggs Center. It is a beautiful facility with a number of great exhibits celebrating Earl Scruggs and his contributions to bluegrass. I highly recommend visiting and give tremendous credit to the city of Shelby, Cleveland County, and the state for working together to bring this museum to Scruggs' home county. Below are some photos of my tour of the Scruggs Center:
You can see more photos from the opening of the Scruggs Center by visiting my Facebook and Instagram pages.
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Ensuring Mortgages Remain Affordable
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On Tuesday, I participated in a Financial Services Subcommittee hearing examining the CFPB's newly implemented qualified mortgage rule. The rule is designed to protect borrowers by requiring lenders to make sure they have the ability to repay the loan before issuing it. While the intent of the rule is noble, I have concerns that it could limit access to mortgage products for low and moderate income homeowners, as is outlined in this Charlotte Observer article. I addressed these concerns in my questions to the witnesses, video of which can be seen by clicking the image below:
You can read more about the hearing, the witnesses who testified, and see video of the entire hearing at the Financial Services Committee's website.
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Examining the Impact of the Volcker Rule
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On Wednesday, the full Financial Services Committee held a hearing to better understand how the newly proposed Volcker Rule will affect job creators. The Volcker Rule, which was adopted in December, prohibits banks from participating in proprietary trading or from owning hedge and private equity funds. Unfortunately the rule, as it has been proposed, has proven unworkable and potentially harmful to the US economy. Furthermore, many questions about the rule are still unanswered. During my questions, which can be seen by clicking the image below, I focused on the uncertainty surrounding the rule's cost and enforcement.
More information on the hearing is available at the Financial Services Committee's website.
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What I Have Been Reading |
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Editorial: Fire volunteers and Obamacare
Gaston Gazette
Recently, it has come to light that the employer mandate of Obamacare could force volunteer fire departments with more than 50 firefighters to either provide healthcare or face significant fines. This would be a fatal blow to many of our nation's volunteer fire departments that already struggle to get by. I have cosponsored legislation, H.R. 3685, to protect volunteer fire departments from this disastrous law by exempting them from the employer mandate.
UNCA chancellor to retire
Asheville Citizen-Times
Anne Ponder, the Chancellor of UNC Asheville announced on Thursday that she would be retiring at the conclusion of this school year. Chancellor Ponder, an Asheville native, has led UNCA since 2006 and has been vital in growing the university into a nationally acclaimed public liberal-arts institution. You can see my statement on Chancellor Ponder's retirement here.
The crowdfunding boss inspired by her parents' struggle
BBC News
Through my work on equity crowdfunding legislation, I have had the privilege of meeting many of the leaders in the field including Danae Ringelmann from IndieGoGo. I thoroughly enjoyed this profile of Danae which focuses on how her parents struggle to raise capital for their small business drove her interest in crowdfunding.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. OFFICE
2334 Rayburn HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
Telephone: 202.225.2576
Fax: 202.225.0316
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HICKORY DISTRICT OFFICE
87 4th St. NW, Ste A, PO Box 1830
Hickory, NC 28603
Telephone: 828.327.6100
Toll-Free in NC: 800.477.2576
Fax: 828.327.8311
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GASTONIA DISTRICT OFFICE
Suite 115
Gaston Co. Administrative Bldg
128 West Main Avenue
P.O. Box 2394
Gastonia, NC 28053
Telephone: 704.833.0096
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BLACK MTN. DISTRICT OFFICE
160 Midland Avenue
Black Mountain, NC 28711
Telephone: 828.669.0600
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