Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Biden administration recently announced it would cancel all outstanding federal student loans held by 560,000 former Corinthian Colleges students. Center for Responsible Lending Senior Policy Counsel Whitney Barkley-Denney made the following statement: We applaud President Biden and Vice President Harris for this move. Tens of thousands of former Corinthian students who had been defrauded by their school, and left wondering for years how they’d recover the money they lost, are now at ease. The administration now needs to immediately cancel $50,000 of student loan debt

BATON ROUGE, LA – Last night, Governor John Bel Edwards of Louisiana vetoed SB 381, a bill that would have expanded predatory lending in the state by legalizing larger loans with longer terms at triple-digit annual interest rates. Statement from Davante Lewis, Director of Public Affairs and Outreach for the Louisiana Budget Project : Louisiana Budget Project applauds Governor Edwards for recognizing the harm that triple-digit interest debt traps cause working families. We applaud his veto of SB 381, a narrowly passed bill that was supported only by companies interested in making high-cost

WASHINGTON, DC – The Senate today voted to confirm Sandra Thompson’s nomination to a full five-year term as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) – the federal regulator that oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Mike Calhoun, president of the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) , issued the following statement: CRL applauds the Senate for confirming Sandra Thompson to a full term as director of FHFA. Ms. Thompson has provided strong leadership as FHFA Acting Director, and is committed to seeing that Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks act to advance housing

Military servicemembers, veterans, and their families report outrageously high interest rates and deceptive lending practices WASHINGTON – The predatory lending practices of EasyPay Finance and Utah-based, FDIC-supervised Transportation Alliance Bank (TAB Bank) are hurting military servicemembers, veterans, and their families, according to a new report from a coalition of consumer advocacy groups released in advance of Memorial Day. EasyPay Finance, which charges up to 189% APR, is popping up as a financing option at furniture stores, auto repair shops, pet stores and other retail outlets

Advocates urge auto repair chains, including AAMCO, Meineke, and Midas, to stop offering predatory auto repair loans with interest rates of as high as 189% WASHINGTON – Today, a coalition of consumer advocacy groups sent letters to major national auto repair chains AAMCO and Precision Tune Auto Care (Icahn Enterprises), Big O Tires and Midas (TBC Corporation), Grease Monkey (FullSpeed Automotive), JiffyLube, and Meineke (Driven Brands) urging their stores and franchisees to stop offering financing through EasyPay Finance and Utah-based TAB Bank, which issue loans at rates up to 189%, even in

Auto repair chains like Charlotte-based Meineke, and local repair shops nationwide are steering customers to predatory lenders engaged in deceptive and abusive practices, charging up to 189% APR WASHINGTON – A new, just-released report by the Stop The Debt Trap coalition finds auto repair shops across the country, including Meineke, headquartered in Charlotte, are offering predatory loans through EasyPay Finance and Transportation Alliance Bank (TAB Bank) that promise no interest if paid in 90 days but end up costing as much as 189% – even in states where an interest rate that high is illegal

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Senate today approved the nomination of Julia Gordon to be Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and FHA Commissioner. In response, Mike Calhoun, president of the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), made the following statement : CRL congratulates Julia Gordon on her confirmation today to lead FHA. She is a dynamic executive who has worked on affordable housing issues across the spectrum, including for rural and low-income borrowers. Ms. Gordon brings extraordinary experience and skills to FHA at a time when all housing market participants must act with

National auto repair chains like AAMCO, JiffyLube, Meineke, and Midas, and local repair shops are steering customers to predatory lenders engaged in deceptive and abusive practices, charging up to 189% APR WASHINGTON – A report released today by the Stop The Debt Trap coalition finds auto repair shops across the country are offering predatory loans through EasyPay Finance and Transportation Alliance Bank (TAB Bank) that promise no interest if paid in 90 days but end up carry annual interest rates up to 189% – even in states where a rate that high is illegal. The report highlights some of the

WASHINGTON – New research released today by the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) shows that cancelling $10,000 of federal student loan debt—the minimal amount most often discussed— would only retire 22 percent of Black student debt and 28 percent of Latino debt . It would also provide similarly limited relief to other borrowers, including first generation college students and those already unable to pay their student debt. In contrast, larger levels of cancellation would provide substantial relief for low-wealth and low-income borrowers who need it the most. For example, $50,000 of

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Federal banking regulators today announced proposed rules to revise and modernize the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). In response, Mike Calhoun, president of the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), made the following statement : Federal banking regulators today issued a notice of proposed rulemaking to modernize the rules that implement the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). This represents a significant step forward in ensuring that financial institutions address the credit needs of Asian, Black, Latino, Native American, rural and other underserved communities. The