Watch the recorded testimony of Mitria Spotser before United States House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services on the importance of protecting consumers in an evolving marketplace.
CRL monitors developments across the consumer finance sector and acts to protect people’s pocketbooks from financial misconduct so families can build financial stability. This includes advocating for enforcement of laws banning discrimination based on race, national origin, sex, and other protected characteristics. CRL also fights to defend the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a crucial government watchdog that was established in the wake of the 2008 Financial Crisis to stop predatory practices.
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In a letter to the author of the Earned Wage Access Consumer Protection Act, advocates warn: "In the guise of offering protections, the bill obscures its true effect: to exempt fintech cash advances from the Truth in Lending Act, to endorse a form of loan that makes workers pay to be paid, and to facilitate new evasions by payday lenders ." The bill, currently a discussion draft, was considered as part of a House Financial Services Subcommittee hearing "Modernizing Financial Services Through Innovation and Competition," held on October 25, 2023— a hearing that the Center for Responsible...
Advocates Warn Financial Services Innovation Act Would Cause "Sahara Desert" of Consumer Protections
In a letter to the House of Representatives' Financial Services Committee, consumer advocates warn that the Financial Services Innovation Act of 2023 would facilitate evasion of existing consumer protection laws and regulations. Citing the foreclosure crisis around 2008 and other examples, the letter states: "Blind endorsement of 'innovations' leads to consumer harms." The bill, currently a discussion draft, was considered as part of a House Financial Services Subcommittee hearing "Modernizing Financial Services Through Innovation and Competition," held on October 25, 2023— a hearing that the...
Many people involved in the criminal legal system live on the economic margins. Most defendants are unable to hire their own lawyer due to indigency. In North Carolina, the average person in prison doesn’t have a high school diploma. The cost of involvement in the criminal legal system can quickly add up to thousands of dollars, but the people expected to pay these costs often don’t have the financial resources to do so. Debt that results from this involvement can be difficult or impossible for them to pay off. North Carolina law provides a number of ways for court officials to attempt to...
In September, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for a lawsuit that could abruptly and permanently close the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – which would not only harm consumers and businesses but would also cause economic chaos.
New data from the bipartisan polling team Lake Research Partners and Chesapeake Beach Consulting shows that voters across the political spectrum overwhelmingly support the ongoing mission of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to regulate the financial industry and protect consumers. The survey also revealed strong support for maintaining the secure, independent funding mechanism for the CFPB. These new findings are consistent with over 10 years of opinion research demonstrating strong public support for the agency’s role and work. Voters are strongly supportive of a variety of...
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a Policy Statement on Abusive Acts and Practices and invited comments from the public. The Center for Responsible Lending applauds the CFPB for its efforts to further clarify abusive acts and practices. The Center further offers insights into how the statement may be strengthened to clarify the ways these acts take unreasonable advantage of a consumer’s inability to protect their interests in selecting or using a product.
From the letter: We strongly believe many of the reforms being considered today will harm consumers and the financial markets. These misguided approaches will place every American taxpayer at risk by increasing the likelihood that our nation’s economy may suffer yet another financial crisis. There are two proposals that are especially concerning. The first increases the asset thresholds at which financial institutions become subject to regulatory oversight. There are more than 4,000 banks in the United States, and this legislative draft would exempt all but 50 from having to comply with...
From the letter: We strongly believe many of the reforms being considered today will harm consumers and the financial markets. These misguided approaches will place every American taxpayer at risk by increasing the likelihood that our nation’s economy may suffer yet another financial crisis. There are two proposals that are especially concerning. The first increases the asset thresholds at which financial institutions become subject to regulatory oversight. There are more than 4,000 banks in the United States, and this legislative draft would exempt all but 50 from having to comply with...
The CFPB plays an integral role in the nation’s financial system. The Bureau’s work ensures that the system functions in a manner that is responsive to the interests of all market participants—consumers, large financial entities, and smaller institutions like Amici . Congress’s chosen method of funding the Bureau underpins the Bureau’s ability to do this important work, free from the outsized influence of any one market segment. Petitioners’ brief convincingly demonstrates that nothing in the text or history of the Constitution—or any decisions of this Court—supports the Fifth Circuit’s...