Overnight Finance: Ryan, Trump aides to huddle on taxes | GOP seeks consumer bureau shakeup | Dems keep after Treasury pick

Ryan, Trump advisers to meet on tax reform: Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and representatives for President-elect Donald Trump will meet Monday night to discuss tax reform, a major priority for the new Congress and incoming administration.

During the meeting, Ryan and his policy staff will walk through the tax-reform blueprint that House Republicans released in June, according to a senior GOP aide.

The Trump aides participating in the meeting will include Reince Priebus, the incoming White House chief of staff, and Stephen Bannon, who has been named Trump’s chief strategist, according to The Washington Post, which first reported the meeting. The Hill’s Naomi Jagoda fills you in: http://bit.ly/2j19oF8.

GOP senators tell Trump to fire consumer bureau chief: A pair of Republican senators are calling on President-elect Donald Trump to immediately fire one of the nation’s top financial regulators.

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In a letter sent to the Trump transition Monday, Sens. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) made the case for the immediate removal of Richard Cordray, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Echoing long-term GOP gripes that the agency is too powerful and lacks sufficient oversight, they waded into a murky legal debate about Cordray’s future running the agency.

“It’s time to fire King Richard,” said Sasse. “President-elect Trump has the authority to remove Mr. Cordray and that’s exactly what the American people deserve.” The Hill’s Peter Schroeder tells us more: http://bit.ly/2jmmGbL.

Top House Dem calls on feds to release Mnuchin docs: The top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee is asking federal agencies to release documents from any investigations into President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Treasury secretary.

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) in a letter released Monday asked the Department of Justice and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to release materials related to any investigations of OneWest Bank while Steven Mnuchin served as its CEO from 2009 to 2015.

Democrats have targeted Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs partner and Hollywood producer, for the more than 36,000 foreclosures OneWest carried out during his tenure. I have the latest here: http://bit.ly/2jwhoPi.

Republicans brush off attacks on Trump Treasury nominee: Republicans are brushing aside criticism of Steven Mnuchin, Donald Trump’s pick for Treasury secretary, even as Democrats seek to label him the “foreclosure king.”

A major progressive group is running ads opposing Mnuchin that target vulnerable Senate Republicans up for reelection in 2018 as Democrats seek to turn his nomination into a liability for the GOP.

But Republican senators insist that what they’ve learned about Mnuchin’s record so far doesn’t concern them. I’ll tell you why here: http://bit.ly/2iXenGl.

Housing advocates praise mortgage decision: Housing advocates on Monday applauded the Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) decision to reduce annual mortgage insurance premiums with home loan rates on the rise.

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro said the FHA will reduce the premiums for most borrowers by a quarter of a percent, dropping them to 0.60 from 0.85 for most new mortgages with a closing date on or after Jan. 27.

FHA’s reduced rates are projected to save new FHA-insured homeowners an average of $500 this year.

“After four straight years of growth and with sufficient reserves on hand to meet future claims, it’s time for FHA to pass along some modest savings to working families,” Castro said. The Hill’s Vicki Needham breaks it down: http://bit.ly/2jwcQrX.

Happy Monday and welcome to Overnight Finance, where we’re back after some winter hibernation and ready to cover the final days of the Obama administration. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.

Tonight’s highlights include the murky future of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Republicans brushing off attacks on Steven Mnuchin, and a huge potential winner from Trump’s infrastructure plan.

See something I missed? Let me know at slane@digital-staging.thehill.com or tweet me @SylvanLane. And if you like your newsletter, you can subscribe to it here: http://bit.ly/1NxxW2N.

Consumer bureau faces uncertain future: The future of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is up in the air, as a court challenge and incoming administration could completely upend the 5-year-old agency.

With all of Washington in a state of upheaval, the uncertainty is perhaps no greater than at the CFPB, where it is unclear who will be running the agency in the months to come, or even what the overall bureau will look like.

That’s leaving both advocates and critics completely unsure of what 2017 holds for the high-profile and controversial agency. Peter Schroeder reports: http://bit.ly/2jw6ysx.

Warren, Dems push bill to force Trump to shed conflicts of interest: Sen. Elizabeth Warren is pushing President-elect Donald Trump to shed any financial investments that may create conflicts of interest once he takes office, warning that he risks violating the Constitution if he doesn’t. 

The Massachusetts Democrat — backed by nearly 30 House and Senate Democrats — will introduce legislation Monday that would require Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence to divest any financial assets that pose a conflict of interest and place the money into a blind trust.

“The American people deserve to know that the President of the United States is working to do what’s best for the country — not using his office to do what’s best for himself and his businesses,” Warren said. 

The requirement also applies to their spouses and any dependent children. Here’s more from The Hill’s Jordain Carney: http://bit.ly/2jaQo4a.

Red states mull higher taxes: Legislators in some of the nation’s most conservative states are considering new ways to boost revenue — including tax increases — after years of deep cuts and a global commodity bust that has robbed them of billions of anticipated dollars.

With legislators returning to capitals across the country this week, key budget negotiators are considering a range of ways to boost revenue, including higher gas taxes, sales tax on internet purchases, new fees and even lotteries.

The debates come as the incoming Trump administration and Republicans in Congress craft proposals for federal tax reform. The Hill’s Reid Wilson explains: http://bit.ly/2jb49jw.

Toll roads poised to boom under Trump plan: Toll roads may surge under a $1 trillion infrastructure proposal being floated by Donald Trump.

The president elect’s idea for rebuilding the nation’s crumbling roads and bridges relies on private companies instead of the federal government to back transportation projects.

Experts say that means investors will be attracted to projects that can recoup their investment costs using some sort of revenue stream, such as through tolls or user fees.

“If he moves forward with an infrastructure plan and there are tax incentives to investors, that could bode well for more investments in new toll facilities,” said Patrick Jones, executive director and CEO of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association. The Hill’s Melanie Zanona tells us why: http://bit.ly/2jb4vqg.

Dem senators oppose charter proposal for financial tech companies: Two Senate Democrats are asking a top federal bank regulator to abandon a plan to offer special accreditation to technology companies that offer financial services.

Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) say the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) plan to issue special banking charters for financial technology companies could undermine efforts to regulate banks.

In December, OCC announced plans to offer special charters to certain financial technology (or “fintech”) companies. These charters would give approved fintech businesses federal recognition, hold them to strict federal banking laws and offer a way for them to avoid a lengthy state-by-state approval effort.

The senators warn that the OCC proposal could disrupt financial regulations. I explain why: http://bit.ly/2jmoKAN.

Oversight panel will focus on IRS, Medicare, new chairman says: Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.), the new chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee’s oversight panel, said the subcommittee’s priorities in the 115th Congress will include combating fraud in Medicare and Social Security, increasing IRS accountability, and protecting people from identity theft.

“I intend to be fair but relentless in exposing government malfeasance,” Buchanan said in a news release Monday. “Fraud, waste and abuse will not be tolerated. Government exists to work for the people, not the other way around.”

Buchanan was named chairman of the oversight subcommittee on Friday. The Florida congressman previously had served as the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee’s human resources subcommittee.

The panel has the ability to investigate issues relating to the IRS, healthcare and entitlement programs. Last year, it held hearings on topics including investigations of healthcare fraud, the tax-filing season and the IRS’s handling of civil asset forfeiture cases. Here’s more from Naomi Jagoda: http://bit.ly/2jwh7vK.

Write us with tips, suggestions and news: slane@digital-staging.thehill.com, vneedham@digital-staging.thehill.com; pschroeder@digital-staging.thehill.com, and njagoda@digital-staging.thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @SylvanLane,  @VickofTheHill; @PeteSchroeder; and @NJagoda.