AFR joined a letter to the House of Representatives urging them to cosponsor the Wall Street Tax Act of 2021, H.R. 328. Also called the Financial Tax Transaction Act (FTT), the bill would create significant revenues and reduce risk and volatility, reorienting Wall Street’s focus away from speculation toward long-term investments that support Main Street businesses, employees, and working families.
AFR has outlined issues around Payment for Order Flow, potential market manipulation by institutional investors, explosive growth in options trading volumes, the increasing gamification of stock trading by retail brokers, and a re-examination of broker capital rules.
AFR wrote a letter to Congress providing a number of policy recommendations that would help reign in SPAC mania and better protect investors.
AFR joined a letter strongly supporting the Force Arbitration Injustice Repeal Act (FAIR Act). The letter stated that the legislation would ensure that workers, consumers, servicemembers, nursing home residents, ordinary investors, and small businesses harmed by bad actors will be able to bring valid claims in court, and would not be forced into private, secretive, corporate-controlled arbitration systems required by nonnegotiable contracts. It argued for the particular need for Congress to move forward with this legislation in light of the economic hardship facing working families during the pandemic.
AFR joined a letter urging Congress to expand assistance to homeowners in the upcoming COVID-19 relief package. The letter, which followed a previous letter to the Biden Administration urging for similar protections, requested that the upcoming COVID relief package include $25 billion for direct assistance to homeowners, with the bulk of the funds deployed through state housing finance agencies through the Homeowner Assistance Fund and including at least $100 million for housing counseling and $39.7 million for the Fair Housing Initiatives Program.
AFR joined a letter expressing strong support for the nomination of Rep. Marcia Fudge as the next Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The letter cited Rep. Fudge’s stand-out qualifications, her long track record of working across party lines and with a wide range of stakeholders, and her demonstrated lifelong commitment to advancing the civil rights of all people. It urged the Senate to support her prompt confirmation.
American families and businesses need an economic response from Congress and the administration that provides real job-creating stimulus, and not just another deregulatory handout to powerful financial interests.
Thank you for your strong commitment to opposing the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)’s efforts to help tech companies dodge regulatory oversight, mix commerce and banking activities, and avoid compliance with consumer protection laws.
Letter from 92 groups urging Congress to include consumer protections in covid-19 relief.
On July 28, Americans for Financial Reform joined 55 other organizations in submitting a letter to Senate leadership in opposition to the Safely Back to School and Back to Work Act, released as a part of the HEALS Act. Young Invincibles led this effort with Americans for