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AFR in the News: Dodd-Frank Supporters Argue Safer Financial System Justifies Cost of Regulation (Wall St. Journal)

“The {American Action Forum] paper doesn’t argue that [the] costs outweigh the benefits. But it doesn’t attempt to quantify any of those benefits, either. That’s a significant flaw, according to Americans for Financial Reform… ‘Extensive economic research shows that the benefits of greater financial sector stability alone will exceed the costs claimed by the AAF,’ the group argued.”

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AFR Responds to Study Claiming High Costs of Dodd-Frank Act

The American Action Forum has released a study claiming that the Dodd-Frank Act will reduce total U.S. economic output by $895 billion between 2016 and 2025. But the study has multiple significant flaws. In sum, the AAF study both exaggerates the growth costs of regulation and fails to include benefits from regulation that would substantially exceed even these exaggerated costs.

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Joint Letter: Corinthian Students Deserve Federal Loan Relief, Say AFR and 33 Cosigners

“Given the extensive evidence of widespread fraud at Corinthian Colleges, we believe all current and former students deserve federal loan discharges. We are particularly concerned that students whose entitlement to federal loan discharges is crystal clear – those recently enrolled in the 30 Corinthian campuses that closed on Monday – are being given incomplete, incorrect, and harmful information about their options from Education Department staff as well as from schools that do not have these students’ best interests in mind. “

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Joint Letter: Corinthian Students Deserve Federal Loan Relief, Say AFR and 33 Cosigners

“Given the extensive evidence of widespread fraud at Corinthian Colleges, we believe all current and former students deserve federal loan discharges. We are particularly concerned that students whose entitlement to federal loan discharges is crystal clear – those recently enrolled in the 30 Corinthian campuses that closed on Monday – are being given incomplete, incorrect, and harmful information about their options from Education Department staff as well as from schools that do not have these students’ best interests in mind. “

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AFR Statement: Rep. Tammy Duckworth and Bipartisan Allies Beat Back Attack on the Military Lending Act

“Late last night, a bipartisan group of Armed Services Committee members, led by Rep. Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), a veteran, upheld the Defense Department’s efforts to close loopholes and add new protections to the Military Lending Act (MLA), a 2007 law that was meant to declare servicemembers off-limits to payday and other debt-trap consumer loans.”

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AFR in the News: SEC Nods to Industry on CEO Pay, Overseas Swaps (Bloomberg)

Marcus Stanley, policy director for Americans for Financial Reform… questioned the SEC’s proposal [for a derivatives exemption]. “We have lots of doubts and questions here about the direction they’re going,” Stanley said. “If they’re going to permit foreign subsidiaries of U.S. banks to sidestep the clearing and exchange trading requirements even for transactions conducted in the U.S., that’s a problem.”

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Letter to Congress: AFR, 28 Organizations Urge Congress to Support Operation Choke Point

“The undersigned civil rights and consumer organizations urge you to oppose any measures to restrict the Department of Justice’s Operation Choke Point or bank regulator efforts to prevent money laundering and payment fraud. In particular, H.R. 766 (Luetkemeyer), the Financial Institution Customer Protection Act of 2015, H.R. 1413 (Luetkemeyer), the Firearms Manufacturers and Dealers Protection Act 2015, and similar bills would make it harder for government agencies to protect the public. In these days of escalating data breaches, terrorism threats, and internet fraud, we need to encourage, not discourage, efforts to deprive criminals of access to the banking system.”