Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – During the State of the Union address, the President said, “we have eliminated more regulations in our first year than any administration in history.” If you wish to see this deregulation he is touting in action, look to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Unlawfully appointed CFPB Acting Director Mick Mulvaney is systematically weakening vital consumer protections. Yana Miles, Senior Legislative Counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), issued the following statement: Mick Mulvaney is making it easier for predatory lenders to pick the pocketbooks of

Unlawfully Appointed Acting Director Mulvaney Wants CFPB to Use Emergency Funds Instead, Signaling Latest Chapter in Campaign to Dismantle the Consumer Bureau WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Mick Mulvaney sent a letter to Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen that “for Second Quarter of Fiscal Year 2018, the Bureau is requesting $0.” Mulvaney wants to instead deplete the reserve fund. Also this week, Mulvaney initiated a public review to critique the CFPB, reopened a CFPB rule intended to stop payday loan debt traps, and without explanation, the CFPB dropped a case against a payday lender accused of

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, OMB Director Mick Mulvaney, who was unlawfully appointed to also be Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), announced that the CFPB would reopen its rule on payday and car-title loans. This is Mulvaney’s first formal step toward trying to eliminate planned CFPB protections against the payday loan debt trap. Rebecca Borné, Senior Policy Counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) issued the following statement: The human devastation caused by payday loans, which average nearly 400 percent APR, has been extensively documented. For more

WASHINGTON, D.C. - From January 8-11, the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) hosted the second of three negotiated rulemaking sessions on its Borrower Defense to Repayment Rule. The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and other advocates are working with DOE officials to strike an agreement to protect students defrauded by their schools. “We remain concerned that the outcome of this process will be a rule that further insulates bad institutional actors from accountability and effectively denies relief to many defrauded students,” said CRL Counsel Ashley Harrington, who is currently one of the

Investigation uncovered that white borrowers with weaker credit profiles received less expensive financing and more favorable treatment than their non-white counterparts who were more financially qualified. WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) released an investigative report detailing the ongoing racially discriminatory practices that exist in the auto lending market. In their findings, NFHA uncovered that more than half the time white borrowers with weaker credit profiles received less expensive financing options and more favorable treatment than their non

Proposed Changes In Housing Finance Reform Could Reduce the Ability of Community Banks and Credit Unions to Provide Mortgage Credit WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Brookings Institution’s Center on Regulation and Markets published a report by the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) on the state of the rural housing market. While almost a quarter of Americans live in rural communities, they are often overlooked in policy discussions. The CRL report analyzes the most recent Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data and reviews aspects of proposed changes to the Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Leading civil and human rights organizations and housing policy advocates wrote in a letter today that both the U.S. Senate Banking and House Financial Services Committees to demand that stakeholders—now excluded from current Congressional discussion on reforming the nation’s housing finance system—be expanded to include all voices and perspectives. Organizations seeking to advise the congressional committees are: The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, Center for Responsible Lending, National

Bill to dismantle higher education opportunity passes committee after late night vote and without bipartisan support WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, shortly after midnight, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce passed the PROSPER Act, a bill to eliminate important programs and safeguards that make higher education accessible and affordable for low-income students. The bill was approved without bipartisan support after a daylong debate and markup procedure where Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) and other sponsors of the legislation summarily denied nearly all 40 amendments submitted by

LOS ANGELES, CALIF. – Today, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors passed a motion calling for a comprehensive approach to protect consumers from the severe harms of predatory high-cost installment loans. The motion, which was introduced by LA County Supervisors Hilda Solis and Sheila Kuehl, instructs several of the Los Angeles County agencies, including the Department of Business and Consumer Affairs, Department of Regional Planning, and County Treasurer and Tax Collector to identify outreach and regulatory approaches to protect residents from harmful financial products. The agencies

DURHAM, NC — Ignoring the voices of families and communities who have worked for many years for relief from the harms of predatory payday lending, a handful of members of Congress have introduced legislation that would nullify the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (Consumer Bureau) national rule to rein in payday lending abuses. Their legislation uses Congressional Review Act authority to repeal the rule and prevent the Consumer Bureau from issuing a similar rule in the future, giving payday and car title lenders a free pass. This legislation, introduced by Rep. Dennis Ross (R-Fla.) and