Research & Policy

Payday loan apps issue small, short-term loans that are typically repaid on the consumer’s next payday either directly from a bank account or as a payroll deduction. 1 Lenders market these loans as a means for workers to make ends meet between paychecks. In reality, workers who are already living paycheck-to-paycheck may find themselves pulled into a cycle of reborrowing...

In this comment, CRL applauds the Department of Housing and Urban Development for taking a critical first step in better understanding buy-now, pay-later financing effects by soliciting information from the general public and all concerned stakeholders. For the reasons discussed in this response, CRL believes that this important step should be followed, however, by focused research into the relationship between...

Improving consumer protection in this area has been one of the most pressing topics at statehouses across the country during the 2025 legislative session.

Watch the full testimony from Jaylon Herbin, Director of Federal Campaigns as he argues for strengthening the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.

45 local and national advocates from across the country, including 20 from Maryland, urge Maryland’s Governor to veto HB1294, a bill that gives app-based payday lenders a special exemption from state laws that prohibit lending that is discriminatory, is deceptive, or carries extremely high interest rates.

The U.S. Department of Education’s commitment to reforming Title IV programs presents a historic opportunity to reshape the federal student aid system into one that is more equitable, efficient, and effective. CRL stands ready to support this process and urges the Department to center the needs of students—especially those that are first generational and underrepresented—in all forthcoming regulatory proposals.

The 349 undersigned consumer, civil rights, labor, legal services and community organizations and academics write to urge you to demand action to restore a strong and independent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). We further urge you to oppose changes to the CFPB’s funding, structure or other changes that would weaken its ability to stand up for consumers, competition and a...

In a letter to President Trump, a group of consumer, economic justice and civil rights organizations urge him to veto S.J. Res 18, which would overturn a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule that limits steep overdraft fees charged by large banks and credit unions.

Nearly 300 consumer, civil rights, labor, legal services and community organizations and academics wrote to oppose S.J. Res. 18 which would overturn the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s overdraft fee rule. This rule would reduce most overdraft fees from $35 to $5, stop manipulative practices by big banks, improve transparency, and put $5 billion back into the pockets of everyday people...

The undersigned 291 health care, consumer, civil rights, labor, legal services, and community organizations and academics write to urge you to oppose S.J. Res. 36 (Rounds) and H.J. Res. 74 (Norman), resolutions under the Congressional Review Act to rescind the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) final rule to remove medical debt from credit reports. We also oppose any attempt to...

The newest poll from the bipartisan polling team Lake Research Partners and Chesapeake Beach Consultingi provides fresh evidence that the overwhelming majority of Americans across the political spectrum support the mission of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to regulate the financial industry and protect consumers. The new findings are consistent with previous opinion research demonstrating widespread, intense public support...

Vehicle-title loans are high-cost loans with little or no underwriting that are secured by a borrower’s car title. Title lenders charge fees and interest as high as 300% APR and put borrowers’ important assets at risk of repossession.

In the 30 states that allow payday lending, single-payment and payday installment loans drained more than $2.4 billion in fees in a single year from low-income borrowers.

Watch the recorded testimony of CRL VP Mitria Spotser before the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services in a hearing titled "Make Community Banking Great Again."

On behalf of the Center for Responsible Lending, thank you for the opportunity to comment on the notice of proposed rulemaking (Proposed Rule) by the U.S. Department of Education on Student Debt Relief Based on Hardship for the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (Direct Loans), the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program, the Federal Perkins Loan (Perkins) Program...

The National Consumer Law Center, the Center for Responsible Lending and the Student Borrower Protection Center submitted to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Reserve System, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on the Request for Information on Bank-Fintech Arrangements Involving Banking Products and Services Distributed to Consumers and Businesses. The comments focus on bank-fintech partnerships in the...

Among the hottest consumer finance topics in recent years is the proliferation of online lenders offering fintech cash advances, including the subset of those lenders who offer earned wage advances (EWA). These are very short-term loans of small dollar amounts that users can access through a smartphone app. Lenders that offer these products strenuously attempt to avoid being regulated like...

Online lenders offering earned wage and cash advances primarily through cell phone apps have proliferated in the past decade, with companies claiming that existing credit laws do not apply to their products.

States in blue have a state-specific factsheet, while states in gray can use the national factsheet which highlights data from users in all 50 states. Access the factsheets at the links below. Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Florida Georgia Illinois Indiana Louisiana Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Nevada New Jersey New York North Carolina Ohio Pennsylvania South Carolina Tennessee Texas...

Payday loan apps offer small, short-term loans that are typically repaid on the consumers’ next payday. These products are sometimes called Earned Wage Advance, Early Wage Access, or EWA but few merit this name. Research by CRL and others has demonstrated using these apps leave many consumers worse off - paying high fees for small loans, increasing their risk of...

Consumer installment loans offered by nonbank lenders can be an expensive form of credit that keeps borrowers in costly long-term debt. Lenders offer these loans to individuals for their personal or household use. Consumers borrow between $1,000 to $25,000 or more. Many states regulate the costs and other terms of these loans, usually requiring them to be repaid monthly over...

The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) submitted an amicus brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit to correct the lower court’s misinterpretation of a Colorado law, and the federal law on which it is based, in order to prohibit out-of-state banks from helping lenders charge Colorado borrowers interest rates...

Public interest organizations, appalled by the Walt Disney Company invoking its restrictive terms of use to evade accountability for the death of a consumer on its premises, wrote to Congress in support of an immediate mark up to the Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal Act (the FAIR Act), S.1376 and H.R. 2953 so that this legislation may be brought to a...

A new poll from the bipartisan polling team Lake Research Partners and Chesapeake Beach Consulting provides fresh evidence that voters across the political spectrum solidly support a strong Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and tough oversight of Wall Street. This support reaches across blue and red states, and is, in some cases, higher in the battleground states of this year's...

The Problem High-cost lenders are ignoring state law and continuing to lend high above the state's legal interest rates, using a practice called Rent-A-Bank. In some cases, these rates are under 36% on very large loans. In others, rates are in the triple-digits, charging consumers up to 200% to finance car repairs, furniture, and even puppies. How Rent-A-Bank Works In...