Whether, when or by how much the Federal Housing Finance Agency will direct an increase in Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s guaranty fees is fast becoming a political as well as a policy issue based on recent public calls by both industry and progressive advocacy groups. Last week, nine industry trade groups – including the American Bankers Association, the Mortgage Bankers Association and the Community Mortgage Lenders of America – dispatched a letter to the respective chairmen of the House and Senate Budget Committees.