Press Releases

Faith Leaders Hand Deliver Letter Signed by 230 Groups DURHAM, N.C. – As a federal agency re-opens the door to predatory payday lending for some banks, scores of groups representing a broad cross-section of Americans are saying “not so fast.” Advocates are mailing hard copies of an open letter to banks and regulators, and faith leaders are delivering the letter...

Federal Legislation Would Open the Door for Triple-Digit APR Loans to Enter States with Interest Rate Caps WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Financial Services Committee last night passed H.R. 3299, the so-called Madden bill, which would make it easier for payday lenders and other usurious lenders to use "rent-a-bank" schemes to charge distressed borrowers triple-digit interest rates that would otherwise...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Center for Responsible Lending President Mike Calhoun released the following statement today on Richard Cordray’s decision to step down as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) later this month: Director Richard Cordray has proven to be a tireless and effective public servant. Under his watch, the CFPB has cracked down on the tricks and traps...

Advisory for Monday, Nov. 13 to Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2017 Negotiated rule making process will include various education and consumer advocates from across the country. WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Monday, November 13, 2017, at approximately 9 a.m. ET the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) along with various advocacy organizations including Consumers Union will participate in the U.S. Department of Education’s...

Washington, D.C. – Today, President Trump signed into law a bill, H.J. Res. 111, that takes away Americans’ right to have their day in court when they are defrauded by banks, credit card companies, payday lenders, student loan servicers, and other financial companies. It does so by rescinding a rule, issued by the independent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which would...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today Nikitra Bailey, an Executive Vice President with the Center for Responsible Lending testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee hearing entitled, “Sustainable Housing Finance: Private Sector Perspectives on Housing Finance Reform.” Bailey reviewed the secondary mortgage market’s history as it relates to low-wealth communities and consumers of color, citing past federal policies that excluded communities...

Rescinding CFPB arbitration rule denies Americans the freedom to seek justice through our court system. WASHINGTON, D.C. – This evening, the U.S. Senate passed a bill that would repeal the independent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) rule on forced arbitration. The CFPB rule prohibits consumer contracts from denying Americans the right to band together in a lawsuit against a company...

A lawsuit filed yesterday by 17 states and the District of Columbia accuses Education Secretary Betsy DeVos of illegally delaying enforcement of a rule designed to eliminate federal education funding from low-performing career college programs. The rule known as gainful employment was adopted by the previous administration in response to widespread concerns over the quality of instruction at these institutions...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its annual Student Loan Ombudsman Report. Over the past year, the Bureau received nearly 23,000 complaints involving private student loans, federal student loan servicing and related debt collections. Additionally, the report recounts in detail how borrowers of all ages are experiencing difficulties accessing consumer protections authorized by existing laws...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today the Center for Responsible Lending, Americans for Financial Reform, People’s Action, and representatives of the Stop the Debt Trap campaign, hosted a press teleconference with reporters to discuss the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) new rule to limit short-term payday and car-title lenders’ ability to trap borrowers in an endless cycle of debt. The payday lending...