CRA Changes Can’t Be A Big Bank Giveaway, Civil Rights and Housing Policy Organizations Warn

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released its Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) to seek public input on how the agency should update Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) procedures. A coalition of civil rights and consumer advocacy organizations has signaled to the OCC that any changes to the CRA must strengthen -- not weaken -- banks’ obligation to meet the needs of low-income communities and communities of color and that changes must result in expanded access to credit in historically redlined areas. The CRA is a fair lending law designed

CFPB Student Loan Watchdog Steps Down

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Seth Frotman, the Assistant Director and Student Loan Ombudsman with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) resigned after seven years of government service with the agency. His resignation is effective September 1, 2018. In response, Ashley Harrington, a policy counsel with the Center for Responsible Lending Counsel released the following statement: It is unfortunate for the 44 million student loan borrowers who together now owe in excess of $1.5 trillion to learn that the dedicated civil servant who shared their concerns has departed the CFPB. As the agency

FDIC Should Not Allow Banks to Make Payday Loans, says Coalition Letter

As Chair of FDIC considers policy, broad coalition urges regulators and banks to avoid toxic loans that trap consumers in debt WASHINGTON, D.C. – The head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Jelena McWilliams, is “reviewing whether to rescind guidelines for ‘deposit advance’ loans,” according to an interview she had with the Wall Street Journal. “Deposit advance” is a euphemism for bank payday loans, which – before the FDIC’s 2013 guidance – had triple-digit interest rates, lacked an ability-to-repay standard, and trapped consumers in debt. For this reason, consumer, civil

Payday Lenders Strip a Half Billion Dollars in Five Years from Vulnerable Michiganders

New research from Center for Responsible Lending reveals disproportionate concentration of payday lenders in Michigan rural and low-income neighborhoods and communities of color DURHAM, N.C. -- Payday lenders have targeted vulnerable Michigan communities, disproportionately locating their stores in communities of color, rural areas, and low-income neighborhoods, according to a new report from the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL). Through a business model designed to trap people facing economic hardship in long-term cycles of debt, payday lenders raked in $94 million in 2016 and more than

Senators to Trump Administration: Don’t Feed Military Servicemembers to Loan Sharks

49 Senators Urge CFPB Head Mick Mulvaney to Reverse His Plan to Weaken Protections for Servicemembers WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, nearly half the Senate, including Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Jack Reed (R.I.), Banking Committee Ranking Member Sherrod Brown (Ohio), and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.), wrote the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), urging it to reverse course on its decision to halt examinations of payday and other lenders for violations of the Military Lending Act (MLA). This letter comes as news reports show the Mick Mulvaney-led CFPB decided to

CA Supreme Court: Courts Can Now Determine if Borrowers’ Long-term Payday and Car Title Loans is "Unconscionable"

OAKLAND, CALIF. – Today, the California Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in De La Torre v. CashCall, that high-interest rates on loans above $2,500 may be deemed unconscionable, and therefore illegal—even if those loans aren’t subject to statutory rate limits. The case involved plaintiff Eduardo De La Torre, a former student at the University of California Davis, who borrowed $2,600 from CashCall at an interest rate of 98% Annual Percentage Rate (APR). The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) co-authored an amicus brief urging the Court to rule that the high-rate of a loan

Another Attack on Military Servicemembers’ Financial Protections: Report Exposes White House Plan for Auto Dealer Rip-Offs of our Troops

News arrives just days after CFPB found to be ending supervision of companies to ensure they’re not illegally overcharging military servicemembers WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, NPR reported that the White House is advocating for changes that would make it easier for auto dealers to fleece active duty military servicemembers. Specifically, the White House plan would let auto dealers pressure military customers into adding an overpriced gap insurance policy to their car loan. This would be a dramatic change to current rules under the Military Lending Act (MLA), a law that protects active duty

DeVos to Repeal Gainful Employment Rule

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced her plan to repeal the Gainful Employment (GE) rule which would hold career education institutions, especially for-profit colleges, accountable for their costs and actual student outcomes. The GE rule, which went into effect in 2014, was based on the simple, practical premise that a program should enable its students to earn enough money to pay back the debt required for its completion. Since 2017, the for-profit college industry has heavily lobbied the agency to rescind or weaken the GE rule as well as

Illegally Overcharging Military Servicemembers to be Easier As CFPB to Stop Supervision of Lenders

BREAKING: Illegally Overcharging Military Servicemembers to be Easier As CFPB to Stop Supervision of Lenders Center for Responsible Lending raises alarm that military families may be re-exposed to predatory lenders because of another move by Mick Mulvaney WASHINGTON, D.C. – This evening, the New York Times reports that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) will no longer supervise financial institutions to ensure they are complying with the Military Lending Act (MLA), a law that protects active duty servicemembers from predatory financial practices. The MLA prevents servicemembers

Report: FDIC Data Shows that Banks Collected $11.45 Billion in Overdraft Fees in 2017

Banks engage in unfair practices to drive up overdraft fees WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) released Unfair Market: The State of High-Cost Overdraft Practices in 2017, a report analyzing the overdraft fee revenue generated by banks and the overdraft practices of the 10 largest banks across the United States. According to Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) data, banks with over $1 billion in assets collected more than $11.45 billion in overdraft and non-sufficient funds (NSF) in 2017. "These banks drain billions of dollars annually from their