Press Releases

Oakland, CA – As people en masse are losing their jobs and income, creditors are taking from desperately needed stimulus checks in order to collect on debts. The Center for Responsible Lending today continued its call for state and federal officials to take immediate action to protect this emergency funding. Marisabel Torres, Center for Responsible Lending’s Director of California Policy...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Small Business Administration announced that it exhausted its $350 billion funding capacity and is unable to accept new applications. Congress has not been able to agree on how to update the agency’s Paycheck Protection Plan (PPP), a provision of the CARES Act designed to provide forgivable loans to small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read...

Banks should not embrace this terrible idea, especially as they are borrowing for free WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, under the cover of a national crisis, five federal bank regulators issued small dollar bank lending guidance that lacks the consumer protections needed to ensure loans do not trap borrowers in a cycle of debt. The guidance was issued by the Consumer...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) Director of Federal Advocacy Ashley Harrington released the following statement today ahead of a vote where the Senate is expected to approve its deal with the White House on a phase three spending bill to address the economic impact of the COVID-19 public health crisis: This bill falls short of providing full relief for hard-working families across the...

Instead, policymakers should incorporate as part of the stimulus package a federal rate cap and a ban on overdraft during crisis WASHINGTON, D.C. – As our nation tries to contain a growing pandemic and our economy heads toward a recession, reporting indicates that bank regulators might choose this moment to eliminate key safeguards that prevent exorbitantly priced, predatory loans. Meanwhile...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and the House Democratic Caucus introduced their COVID-19 stimulus package, Take Responsibility for Workers and Families Act. Among the proposals, the bill includes provisions that support student loan debt cancellation and a halt on home foreclosures. Center for Responsible Lending Federal Advocacy Director and Senior Counsel Ashley Harrington...

At “time of national crisis,” immediate adoption of bold financial protection and relief measures is needed in stimulus package WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) joined with 26 national civil rights, consumer, housing and labor groups, and 35 state groups in sending a letter to Congress with specific financial services policy proposals that help address the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) applauded the introduction of an emergency student loan payment and debt cancellation plan introduced by U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). The plan would provide needed relief to federal student loan borrowers through immediate cancellation of monthly student loan payments for...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today in a board meeting, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced that it has approved industrial loan company (ILC) applications for Square Financial Services, Inc. and federal student loan servicer Nelnet Bank. The agency also recently announced a notice of proposed rulemaking on ILCs. By approving these ILC applications, the FDIC has broadened the ability of...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) released Treat Fannie and Freddie as Utilities, a report finding that the best model for regulating Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the government-sponsored enterprises, or GSEs) outside of conservatorship is utility rate-of-return regulation. Under this type of regulation, the GSEs would pool risk nationally and offer broad access to affordable...