Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Department of Education announced its final extension of the federal student loan repayment forbearance, which includes the suspension of interest accrual and collections activity through January 2022. The previous deadline was September 30th, 2021. Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) Federal Advocacy Director and Senior Counsel Ashley Harrington released the following statement: The pandemic-induced economic...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Center for Responsible Lending President Mike Calhoun released the following statement on the passing of AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka: We are saddened by the passing of AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. The working people of America have lost a fierce human rights and labor activist. Unafraid to speak truth to power, Trumka challenged classism, pushed for economic programs...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the leadership of Independence University told its faculty the school will close on August 1 in an email that also instructed recipients not to inform students and borrowers of the closure. Independence U. Lays Off Staff, Says Feds Stopped Aid | Republic Report Independence University announced to its staff this week that they would be laid...

CRL to testify in support of legislation at Senate hearing scheduled for tomorrow morning WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) – chairs of the Senate Armed Services and Senate Banking committees respectively – along with Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) introduced the Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act. The...

OAKLAND, CALIF. – California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) this week released a report revealing that the state’s payday lenders made fewer than 6.1 million loans with a value of $1.68 billion in 2020, which represents a 40 percent decline overall and a 30 percent decline in customers from 2019. The decrease can be attributed to several factors...

Washington, D.C. – The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) this week announced that it will work to rescind Trump-era rules that weakened the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) and that it will work jointly with the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to strengthen and modernize regulations implementing the CRA. The 2020 CRA rule...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), the Institute for College Access and Success (TICAS), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), New America’s Higher Education Program, and Veterans Education Success (VES) submitted a letter to the U.S. Department of Education opposing the proposed acquisition of Walden University by Adtalem, a corporation that operates for-profit educational institutions. Adtalem...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) formally introduced three bills to help more people afford to have a roof over their head without sacrificing food, medicine, or other life necessities. The legislative package – the Downpayment Toward Equity Act of 2021, Ending Homelessness Act of 2021, and Housing Is Infrastructure Act of 2021 –...

WASHINGTON, DC – Provisions of the Fair Housing Act which fight our nation’s legacy of government-sponsored residential segregation and discrimination could again be enforced if a proposed federal rule is adopted by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), according to a letter released by fair housing groups. The letter supports restoration of the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH)...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – One of the largest student loan debt servicers, the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Authority (PHEAA), announced Thursday that it would no longer service student loans when its contract with the federal government ends in December. PHEAA, which operates as FedLoan Servicing, services student loans for about 8.5 million borrowers, representing approximately 20 percent of all federal student...