Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Education publicly announced that it would miss a November 1 deadline to issue new rules to replace Obama-administration rules known as Borrower Defense to Repayment and Gainful Employment. Under Secretary DeVos, the Department had sought to delay, suspend, and rewrite the rules designed to protect students and hold career and technical colleges accountable...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A breaking news report from The New York Times exposes even more racially derogatory remarks from Eric Blankenstein, a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) political appointee handpicked by President Trump and CFPB head Mick Mulvaney to oversee supervision, enforcement, and fair lending. Mr. Blankenstein’s comments are dismissive of racism and show that he is unfit to oversee...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services introduced a bill to reverse the Trump Administration’s anti-consumer agenda. The Consumers First Act, ( H.R. 6972) proposes legislative remedies to restore to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB): Full supervisory and enforcement powers in the Bureau’s fair lending office; Prior interagency...

Center for Responsible Lending warns policymakers against giving companies a “Get Out of Jail Free” card WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today at approximately 9 a.m. ET, the Center for Responsible Lending’s (CRL) Director of Federal Advocacy, Scott Astrada, will testify before the House Financial Services Committee’s Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Subcommittee for a hearing entitled: Examining Opportunities for Financial Markets...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Friday, September 28, at approximately 9 a.m. ET, the Center for Responsible Lending’s (CRL) Director of Federal Advocacy, Scott Astrada, will testify before the House Financial Services Committee’s Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Subcommittee for a hearing entitled: Examining Opportunities for Financial Markets in the Digital Era. In the hearing, the committee and its witnesses will...

OAKLAND, CALIF. – California Governor Jerry Brown has signed into law SB 818, a bill to restore key provisions in California’s landmark “Homeowner’s Bill of Rights” (HBOR) legislation which passed in 2012 in response to the foreclosure crisis. HBOR has prevented thousands of avoidable foreclosures by requiring mortgage loan servicers to engage in timely, fair and transparent process with struggling...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Bank recently rolled out its online Simple Loan product where borrowers can take out loans of $100 to $1,000. The borrower would be required to pay the loan back over three monthly installment payments with an annual percentage rate (APR) of 70% to 88%, well over the 36% APR cap that consumer advocates and civil rights...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Monday September 10, 2018, the national Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (Lawyers’ Committee), the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), and the National Student Legal Defense Network (NSLDN) filed a brief in the D.C. District Court to advocate on behalf of D.C. in a lawsuit challenging the District’s right to pass laws that better protect...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today before a U.S. House Financial Services Committee hearing on reforms to the housing finance system and the future of Government-Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs), the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) presented testimony that called for a trio of components to be preserved and strengthened. Together these principles will build upon housing reforms that have already occurred, while also...

OAKLAND, CALIF. – The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) is calling on California Governor Jerry Brown to veto AB 237, a bill which would expand unsound lending practices in ways that do not address the real needs of low income and underserved communities. In fact, the changes proposed in this bill put consumers at risk of unaffordable and even predatory...