The battle over the Dodd-Frank-mandated risk-retention rules continues on Capitol Hill, with lawmakers rehashing concerns about either the detrimental or beneficial effects the proposed rule may have on the market. The Dodd-Frank Act required federal regulators to come up with a definition of “qualified residential mortgages” that would be exempt from a 5 percent risk-retention requirement when securitized. During a hearing this week in the House Oversight Subcommittee on TARP, Financial Services and Bailouts of Public and Private Programs, Republican lawmakers argued that transparency is a better solution to restoring investor confidence and reviving the non-agency MBS market. But according to Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-MD, lenders shouldn’t be let off the hook, and the risk-retention rules do furnish necessary...