Senate Rejects DeVos’ 2019 Harmful Student Loan Debt Rule

If approved by the President, the Obama-Era 2016 Borrower Defense rule would stay in effect and provide relief for students defrauded by for-profit colleges WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, through a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution, the U.S. Senate voted to invalidate U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos’ 2019 harmful Borrower Defense (BD) Rule, scheduled to go into effect this summer. If the President signs the CRA resolution, it would void DeVos’ BD rule and leave in effect the 2016 Obama Administration BD rule, which would continue its purpose of providing relief for students

CFPB Turns Toward Debt Collectors and Away from Consumers

WASHINGTON, DC - On Friday, February 21, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a Supplemental Notice of Propose Rulemaking (Supplemental NPRM), that would provide a path for debt collectors to pursue time-barred debt. The rule supplements a proposed debt collection rule that the CFPB released in May 2019. As proposed, debt collectors could collect debt that is beyond statutes of limitations – as long as consumers receive certain disclosures at the time of initial contact and for any required validation notice. The consumer disclosure would apply only if the debt collector

Morning Consult Poll Shows Two-Thirds of Voters Are Concerned About Rent-A-Bank, Loan Laundering Scheme Spreading 100%+ APR Loans

Widespread alarm at high-cost non-bank lenders funneling loans through banks to charge interest rates higher than state laws allow for non-bank lenders Concern over this deceptive practice was high across the political spectrum with concern expressed by 71% of Democrats, 64% of Republicans, and 63% of independents. WASHINGTON, D.C. – Voters across the country and political spectrum are concerned that some high-cost non-bank lenders arrange loans through banks at rates higher than state laws allow, according to a new poll commissioned by the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and conducted by

CRL Federal Campaign Director Testifies Before House Committee on Rent-A-Bank Schemes

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) Director of Federal Campaigns Graciela Aponte-Diaz testified before the full House Financial Services Committee for a hearing entitled: Rent-A-Bank Schemes and New Debt Traps: Assessing Efforts to Evade State Consumer Protections and Interest Rate Caps. CRL and other consumer and civil rights organizations have underscored their concerns about rent-a-bank schemes to the Office of the Comptroller and Currency (OCC) and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)—warning the agencies that this loan laundering scheme enables

Consumer and Civil Rights Groups Strongly Oppose FDIC Rent-a-Bank Payday Proposal that Would Sidestep State Interest Rate Caps

National Consumer Law Center and Center for Responsible Lending Experts to Testify in Rent-a-Bank Hearing before U.S. House Today at 10am ET Washington, D.C. – Eleven national consumer and civil-rights groups submitted a comment letter late yesterday to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) strongly opposing the federal banking regulator’s proposal, which risks green lighting triple-digit rent-a-bank schemes. -High-cost lenders use these schemes to funnel their loans through rogue banks to try to avoid state limits on predatory loans. The Center for Responsible Lending, National

New Morning Consult Poll Shows Broad, Bipartisan Support among Voters for 36% Interest Rate Cap on Payday and Installment Loans

Poll released as House Committee Chairwoman Waters backs bipartisan legislation to establish a national 36% interest rate cap WASHINGTON, D.C. – Voters across the country and across the political spectrum strongly support a 36% annual interest rate cap for both payday and consumer installment loans, according to a new poll commissioned by the nonprofit Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and conducted by independent polling firm Morning Consult ( View a PDF slide deck showing highlights of the poll). Approximately 10,000 registered voters took part in the survey, which has a margin of error

ADVISORY: House Committee Hearing on Predatory Lending Rent-a-Bank Schemes to Feature CRL, NCLC Testimony

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Wednesday, February 5, at approximately 10 a.m. ET, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) Director of Federal Campaigns, Graciela Aponte-Diaz, and National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) Associate Director Lauren Saunders, will testify before the full House Financial Services Committee for a hearing entitled: Rent-A-Bank Schemes and New Debt Traps: Assessing Efforts to Evade State Consumer Protections and Interest Rate Caps. CRL and other consumer and civil rights organizations have underscored their concerns about rent-a-bank schemes to the Office of the Comptroller and

CRL Statement on CFPB’s Plan to Revise Qualified Mortgage Standards

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Eric Stein, Senior Vice President at Self-Help, a community development lender and parent of the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), released the following statement after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced, in a letter to Members of Congress, that its forthcoming proposal will not rely solely on a loan’s debt-to-income ratio (DTI) in determining whether it is a qualified mortgage (QM) after the expiration of the “GSE Patch,” which grants an exemption for loans eligible for sale to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: We welcome Director Kraninger’s

Consumer and Civil Rights Groups Urge Federal Banking Regulator to Stop Rent-a-Bank Payday Loan Schemes

Groups Strongly Oppose OCC Proposal that Would Bypass State Rate Caps to Allow High-Cost Predatory Loans Washington, D.C. – The Center for Responsible Lending, National Consumer Law Center, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, NAACP, National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders, Americans for Financial Reform, Consumer Federation of America, Public Citizen, and U.S. PIRG, sent a strong message late yesterday to a federal bank regulator, the Office of the Comptroller and Currency (OCC), opposing a proposed rule that would encourage rent-a-bank schemes that enable loans

Credit Unions, CDFIs, CRL File Amicus Brief to Defend Constitutional Structure of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

The CFPB’s structure is constitutional and critical to ensuring that it can carry out its consumer protection mission free from undue political and industry influence. WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC (Cohen Milstein) submitted an amicus brief to the United States Supreme Court in the case of Seila Law LLC v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau  (CFPB) on behalf of their clients, community development financial institutions (CDFIs) Self-Help Credit Union, Hope Enterprise Corporation / Hope Credit Union (HOPE), Inclusiv