The Tax Plan That Occupy Wall Street Loves – Yuval Rosenberg (The Fiscal Times)

“In a letter to Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), the co-chairs of the congressional ‘super committee’ tasked with finding $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction measures by November 23, a group called Americans for Financial Reform, which is a coalition of more than 250 economic, union, and activist groups, explained why it’s backing the tax: ‘The deficit problem that the Select Committee must address was to a significant degree created by the world financial crisis, a crisis caused by Wall Street speculation.’”

Volcker Rule Costs Banks $1 Billion, U.S. Government Says – Silla Brush (Bloomberg)

“‘Only $50 million of these costs are these kinds of costs of government regulation,’ said Marcus Stanley, policy director for Americans for Financial Reform, a coalition of 250 groups including the AFL-CIO labor group and AARP. The cost ‘is very small compared to potentially making trillions of dollars in assets safer,’ he said in a telephone interview.’”

Lawmakers to Propose Transaction Tax for Financial Firms Modeled on Europe – Phil Mattingly (Bloomberg)

“The AFL-CIO and National Nurses United, a professional association and union for nurses, have scheduled a rally in front of the Treasury Department on Nov. 3 in support of the fee. Americans for Financial Reform…is circulating petitions in support of the measure.”

Obama To The Rescue On Federal Student Loans, But What About Private Loans? – Eva Pereira (Forbes)

“The new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) aims to make the education lending market much more transparent with its KnowBeforeYouOwe project, but for those already knee deep private debt, there is little recourse. Several distressed borrowers shared their private loan struggles on a recent call organized by the Americans for Financial Reform, a consumer rights coalition.”

AFR sent a letter to the Federal Reserve and FDIC on the reported transfer of the Merrill Lynch derivatives book to Bank of America’s depository subsidiary, which could expose taxpayers to substantial additional risks.”

AFR in the News: Private Student Loan Debts Highlight Need for Fully Operational CFPB
The Institute for College Access & Success and Americans for Financial Reform hosted a conference call with reporters and bloggers on Tuesday, …