AFR joined twenty public interest, consumer, and labor organizations in sending a letter to members of Congress urging them to oppose HR 3211. This legislation would reopen the door to the higher fees borrowers faced in the lead up to the mortgage crisis.
AFR opposes HR 992, legislation which would change the law to permit public support of swaps dealing activities at some of the largest banks on Wall Street. At a time when there is bipartisan agreement that subsidies to too-big-to-fail banks must end, this legislation moves in exactly the wrong direction.
AFR stands with many of our partner organizations in opposition to HR 2374, which would delay needed reforms that would protect middle-class savings and help to restore needed confidence in our financial markets. Here is a compilation of materials on the issue of HR 2374.
This legislation would prevent the Department of Labor from addressing flaws in protections for retirement savings, protections that have not been updated for almost forty years. It would also delay efforts of the Securities and Exchange Commission to raise the standard of conduct that applies to brokers when they give advice to retail investors.
AFR letter sounds the alarm against HR 1003, which would undermine Dodd-Frank by more than doubling the number of cost-benefit analysis requirements imposed on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Under current practice, investors seeking brokerage and other financial advisory services must agree in advance to submit any complaints to arbitration by an industry-run regulatory body. The Investor Choice Act would restore the right of investors to take such disputes to a court of law, if they prefer.
Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) has introduced legislation directing U.S. companies to refuse to comply with the proposed tax. Rather than trying to obstruct the EU proposal, “U.S. elected officials should be considering the potential benefits that such taxes could deliver for this country.”
AFR joined AARP, AFL-CIO, Consumer Federation of America, Demos, Pension Rights Center, Public Citizen, and U.S. PIRG in sending a letter to members of the Senate urging them not to sign a letter being circulated by Senator Tester attempting to stop a Department of Labor rule making to protect retirement savings by closing gaps and loopholes in fiduciary duty requirements in connection with ERISA funds.
AFR joined the AFL-CIO, AFSCME, Consumer Federation of America, SEIU, and U.S. PIRG in sending a letter to the Senate opposing S. 710. S. 710 would weaken accountability for financial advice to municipalities, harm communities, and is unnecessary given the exemptions that already exist in the law and the authority of the SEC to address any outstanding issues.
AFR joined more than 160 public interest groups in urging the Senate to confirm Richard Cordray as Director of the CFPB.