Comment Letter

The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) files this comment in response to the U.S. Department of Education’s proposed rule that would amend the Borrower Defense to Repayment provision of the Higher Education Act (HEA) and rescind and rewrite previously promulgated regulations from 2016. CRL is extremely concerned about the Department’s decision to rewrite rules meant to protect students and taxpayers from unscrupulous for-profit colleges and its tacit refusal to hold these schools accountable for their predatory tactics and activities. Moreover, CRL finds the Department’s current proposal...

We thank NCUA for its efforts to protect credit union members from payday loans. In recent years, the number of federal credit unions (FCUs) we are aware of engaging in payday lending, either directly or indirectly through credit union service organizations (CUSOs), has decreased to a single FCU. And through both its regular rules and its PAL program, NCUA has encouraged FCUs to offer small dollar installment loans that can be significantly cheaper than payday loans. Continue reading the letter...

Committee on Financial Services U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515 Re: HR 4439 (Hollingsworth), Sham Lender Bill – Oppose Dear Representative, The 120 undersigned consumer, civil rights, labor, community and legal services organizations strongly oppose HR 4439 (Hollingsworth), the so-called Modernizing Credit Opportunities Act. The bill would allow payday lenders to use the fine print of loan terms and sham rent-a-bank arrangements to make loans at 100% to 400% APR or higher in states where those rates are illegal. The bill would undercut the historic power of the states to...

In response to the Education Department’s stated interests to end an 18-year old departmental practice of sharing information with law enforcement officials, the Center for Responsible Lending recently wrote comments urging Secretary Betsy DeVos to continue the productive and long-standing exchanges. Citing recent collaborations that together returned or forgave more than $36 million to harmed consumers in just four states, CRL urged their uninterrupted continuation to continue holding bad actors in the student loan industry accountable for their unfair, illegal, deceptive and abusive...

Any proposal should hold to the spirit of the original HEA which sought to open the doors of higher education to all. This proposition connotes meaningful access and opportunity to quality higher education programs, not simply the creation of more options or the provision of unduly burdensome loans. Despite this goal, our current system is at risk of curtailing the access it first envisioned. Thus, any reauthorization should focus on the outcomes for those who have been traditionally shut out of higher education: low-income students and students of color. To do this, any HEA reauthorization...

Lenders can and do make non-covered loans without regard to the borrower’s ability to repay as scheduled, and doing so can be highly profitable. In particular, high-cost loans provide a significant disincentive against lending based on ability to repay, even absent a coercive repayment mechanism or security. When rates are high, lenders can profit despite significant defaults and can even make profits on loans that default. We urge the Bureau to use its enforcement authority without delay to address unfair and abusive practices related to lending without regard to ability to repay in the high...

These comments respond to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s proposed amendments to the qualified-mortgage (QM) rule as it relates to 1) the importance of the QM rule, 2) why the constrained lending environment is due to factors other than QM, and 3) why they should be addressed rather than weakening QM, 4) our analysis of CFPB’s proposed evaluation, and 5) possible responsible changes to the Ability-to-Repay/QM rules.

The Center for Responsible Lending, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, NAACP, National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, National Fair Housing Alliance, and National Urban League file this comment in response to Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's (the Enterprises) proposed Underserved Markets Plans. (pdf) Thank you for the opportunity to provide input on the Enterprises’ plans. The content of the proposed plans is critical to determining whether the Enterprises are fulfilling their Duty to Serve obligations in each underserved market – manufactured...

The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) filed this comment in response to FHFA's proposed evaluation guidance for the Duty to Serve Rule. The evaluation guidance is the method for FHFA to assess Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's (the Enterprises) Duty to Serve Underserved Markets Plans. The strength and clarity of the evaluation guidance will greatly inform the Enterprises' plans. A successful evaluation process is inextricably linked with a successful plan development process. These comments provide recommendations with respect to public input and transparency, assessing the content of the plans...

Despite significant concerns raised by a number of interested parties—including hundreds of advocacy groups, state regulators, and a bipartisan group of Members of Congress—the OCC is moving forward with its fintech charter proposal. This comment letter asserts that the OCC does not have the legal authority to charter non-depositories, that a national bank charter for non-depository fintech institutions will facilitate consumer harm through preemption of strong state laws, and that federal supervision from the OCC is not a substitute for critical safeguards that exist at the state level.