A growing number of U.S. congressional leaders are pushing mortgage lenders to halt foreclosure proceedings in the wake of a scandal surrounding poor documentation practices.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) wants mortgage servicers in Nevada to stop foreclosing on homes until they put into place systems to ensure that foreclosure is the only option for a struggling homeowner.

"I'm concerned about those cases where carefully analyzing a homeowner's income and debt would lead to the conclusion that a modification is the best solution," he wrote in a letter to the state's largest mortgage servicers.

"These are the cases where adjusting the terms or reducing principal of the mortgage would result in the net present value of the loan being greater to the lender than it would recover through foreclosure."

Mortgage servicers have been attracting sharp criticism in recent weeks for employing a practice called "robo" signing through which documents are signed by computers or people who don't properly review the paperwork. Several banks, including Bank of America Corp. (BAC), J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) and Ally Financial Inc. have halted foreclosures in 23 states to review their documentation procedures.

Rep. Edolphus Towns (D., N.Y.) is pushing for foreclosure proceedings to be stopped in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

"Anyone forced to go through this process should be treated fairly," he said.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D., R.I.) is pushing for Fannie Mae (FNMA) and Freddie Mac (FMCC) to halt foreclosures on mortgages they hold or control.

-By Meena Thiruvengadam, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6629; meena.thiruvengadam@dowjones.com