Americans for Financial Reform

News Release: Recover Improperly Disbursed PPP Funds

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Paycheck Protection Program, a critical pillar of the CARES Act pandemic relief legislation, failed to equitably distribute money despite an avowed goal of focusing on small businesses, according to a new report from seven public interest organizations and labor unions.

In addition to adopting other reforms for future relief programs, the U.S. Small Business Administration should use its statutory power to claw back improperly issued or misused loans. Those cases might include PPP loan recipients who failed to spend at least 60% of their loan proceeds on employee wages, and cases where recipients used the money to issue stockholder dividends, buy back stock, or award executive bonuses.

Report: Lessons Learned from the Paycheck Protection Program

The Paycheck Protection Program, a critical pillar of the CARES Act pandemic relief legislation, failed to equitably distribute money despite an avowed goal of focusing on small businesses, according to a new report from AFREF and six other public interest organizations and labor unions.

Letters to Regulators: Letter in Response to the Federal Reserve’s RFI on a Central Bank Digital Currency

AFREF and Demand Progress submitted a letter in response to the Federal Reserve’s Request for Information on a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). In the submission, we urge the Fed to consider privacy and fraud protection, and also point to other alternatives to CBDC the Fed could pursue to promote broader financial inclusion.

In The News: Who gets to own a bank?

In today’s polarized environment, it’s refreshing to see the banking industry and consumer advocacy organizations in agreement over the fact that industrial loan corporations or industrial banks only serve as a loophole for large companies to own a bank. These odd bedfellows range from the Center for Responsible Lending, Americans for Financial Reform and the Woodstock Institute on one end, to the Bank Policy Institute, PNC and the Independent Community Bankers of America on the other.

NEWS RELEASE: Private Equity is Financing the Climate Crisis Away from Public Scrutiny

A new report finds that the private equity industry owned close to 700 utility-scale power generation facilities in the United States in 2021 that emitted about 200 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually.

Report: Private Equity Ownership of U.S. Power Plants: A Hidden Climate Threat

Private equity investment firms have quietly bought up close to 700 predominantly fossil fuel-fired electric power plants, making these Wall Street investment houses major greenhouse gas emitters.

News Release: National Auto Repair Chains Must Stop Offering Predatory Loans Through EasyPay Finance and TAB Bank

WASHINGTON – Today, a coalition of consumer advocacy groups sent letters to major national auto repair chains AAMCO and Precision Tune Auto Care (Icahn Enterprises), Big O Tires and Midas (TBC Corporation), Grease Monkey (FullSpeed Automotive), JiffyLube, and Meineke (Driven Brands) urging their stores and franchisees to stop offering financing through EasyPay Finance and Utah-based TAB Bank, which issue loans at rates up to 189%, even in states where that rate is illegal. The letters can be found here.

Letters to Congress: Letter in Support of H.R. 5912, The Close the ILC Loophole Act

AFR led a letter from a broad coalition of 33 groups representing civil rights, financial reform, and consumer advocate groups in support of H.R. 5912 the “Close the ILC Loophole Act.”

In The News: The Deep Roots of the Racial Wealth Gap—and How We Undo It

In the more than 150 years since the end of the Civil War, Black American wealth remains a fraction of that held by White Americans. Just after emancipation in 1865, African Americans owned 0.5% of national wealth. While closing this divide is essential to achieving racial equity in this country, it’s important that we apply the right tools for the job. We can’t properly solve problems without understanding their origins. The growing divide between White wealth and Black wealth is a product of economic systems designed to extract wealth from Black, Indigenous, and other people of color and redirect it to the wealthy, almost uniformly White elite.

Letters to Regulators: Comment Letter on DOL Climate Risk RFI

AFREF and 17 partners submitted comments to the Department of Labor on its request for information on climate risk to retirement plans and pensions, urging further integration of systemic risks like climate change, environmental, racial, and economic inequality into the administration of private retirement plans and pensions and the Federal Thrift Savings Plan.