Category Archives: Education Fund

Letters to Regulators: AFR Education Fund Calls on SEC for Stronger Regulation of Funds in Wake of March 2020 Bailout

The AFR Education Fund sent a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission responding to a request for comment on regulatory options for money market funds in light of the collapse and bailout of many money market funds during the March 2020 coronavirus financial shock. The letter called for strong new regulatory steps to fix incentives that create financial instability for these products. It also questioned whether additional regulation should be extended to other types of fixed-income investment funds beyond money market funds narrowly defined, as there is evidence that these types of fund arrangements can also contribute to financial instability.

sign for the CFPB outside a building

Letters to Regulators: Letter to the CFPB Re: Renewed Request to Rescind Language in April 1, 2020 CFPB Guidance Allowing CRAs and Furnishers to Exceed FCRA Deadlines for Disputes

AFREF joined our partners in sending a follow-up letter calling on the CFPB to rescind its April 1, 2020 guidance allowing consumer reporting agencies and furnishers to exceed the dispute investigation deadlines under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. In the six months since we sent our last letter, the situation has only gotten worse, with nearly 26,000 more complaints submitted by consumers about delayed or nonexistent responses to credit/consumer reporting disputes. We urged the Bureau to revoke the guidance as soon as possible to prevent further consumer harm. 

the front side of an apartment building

Letters to Regulators: Letter to the OMB Opposing Proposed Redefinition of Metropolitan Statistical Areas

AFREF joined a letter opposing the Office of Management and Budget’s proposal to redefine metropolitan statistical areas. The OMB’s proposal would result in a substantial loss for undeserved and under-invested communities by reducing the number of low and moderate income census tracts eligible for Community Reinvestment Act credit and decreasing the number of banks providing Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data, which may pose increased challenges to fair lending enforcement.

Paper: Lifting the Curtain on Private Equity

In partnership with The American Federation of Teachers, AFREF released a paper entitled “Lifting the Curtain on Private Equity: A Guide for Institutional Investors and Policymakers.”

lawyer signing a document Photo by Helloquence on Unsplash

Letters to Regulators: Letter to HUD Urging for Protections for FHA Borrowers

AFREF joined our partners to send a letter urging HUD to take further steps to protect FHA borrowers facing COVID-related hardships form foreclosure, including requiring servicers to communicate the availability of several loss mitigation options, providing guidelines for contacting borrowers before the end of a forbearance, and collect performance data on COVID-19 loss mitigation options and make this information available to the public.