CRL in the News

"The poll makes clear that consumers want the CFPB to protect them from abusive predatory lenders, and they want the agency’s work to continue without interference,” said Mike Calhoun, president of CRL. “For too long payday lenders have drowned Americans in unaffordable, crippling debt that often leads to damaged credit, inability to pay for daily expenses, and even bankruptcy. Before...

Congress failed to repeal the rule when it had the chance due in part to public support for the regulation, but the Treasury Department’s added push to rescind the rule could give the CFPB under Mulvaney additional cover to do so, Scott Astrada, the federal advocacy director at the Center for Responsible Lending, told Bloomberg Law.

“These kind of provisions would open a loophole and open a gateway to the same old predatory lenders that have migrated online,” said Scott Astrada, CRL’s director of federal advocacy.

Americans for Financial Reform and the Center for Responsible Lending released a survey Tuesday showing that roughly 80 percent of voters polled are concerned about the Trump administration's impact on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Americans for Financial Reform and the Center for Responsible Lending will release survey results Tuesday showing that an overwhelming majority of Americans — at least 80% — are concerned about the Trump administration’s recent efforts to curb oversight of banks and payday lenders, and the possible shutdown of a database of consumer complaints.

“There’s a huge amount of public support for the rule and no congressional action or appetite for repealing the rule,” said Scott Astrada, director of federal advocacy for the Center for Responsible Lending.

In 2013, the state created a small-dollar loan program to regulate loans between $300 and $2,500. The state caps interest on those loans between 20 and 30 percent, but any loan above $2,500 is the “real Wild, Wild West,” said Graciela Aponte-Diaz, California policy director at the Center for Responsible Lending, a nonprofit focused on consumer lending.

A coalition of financial sector watchdog groups and advocates for stronger consumer protection laws also condemned the OCC's announcement, including the Center for Responsible Lending, Americans for Financial Reform, National Consumer Law Center and Consumer Federation of America.

Per release out this a.m.: “A new survey, released today by Americans for Financial Reform and the Center for Responsible Lending, found voters oppose actions taken by the agency’s new leadership to undermine its mission. “Strong majorities across parties disagree with [Acting CFPB Director Mick] Mulvaney’s actions on lending discrimination, payday lending, and consumer complaints -- and they believe lax...

"It's a comprehensive package that seeks to make college more affordable, more accessible, and hold institutions more accountable for the results that they achieve,” explains Ashley Harrington, a special assistant to the president of the Center for Responsible Lending. “And so we think that it's a big, strong step in the right direction."