Americans for Financial Reform

In the News: Private equity’s terrible impact on New Jersey’s nursing homes (The Star-Ledger)

“As COVID-19 swept through New Jersey’s nursing homes, residents and workers got sick and died, families struggled to get basic information about their loved ones, and caregivers were rightly terrified that they would bring the virus back to their own families. What few realized is how a secret Wall Street takeover of much of the long-term care industry has amplified the health risks to those who live and work in nursing homes” according to AFR Senior Researcher Patrick Woodall and 1199SEIU Executive Vice President Milly Silva.

Joint Statement: 59 Organizations Call on SEC to Adopt Mandatory Climate and ESG Disclosures

“Investors know that climate change is a threat that some companies aren’t taking seriously enough. They need information that lets them better understand climate risks and opportunities to see who they can trust to thrive in a low-carbon future economy.”
–Alex Martin, Senior Policy Analyst, Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund

Letters to Regulators: Letter Asking for Restored Supervisory and Enforcement Tools in Mortgage Servicing Rules

AFREF, NCLC, NFHA and NHLP sent a letter to the CFPB, FRB, FDIC, OCC, NCUA and CSBS asking the agencies to update the April 3, 2020 Joint Statement on Supervisory and Enforcement Practices Regarding the Mortgage Servicing Rules in Response to the COVID-19 Emergency and the CARES Act to restore key supervisory and enforcement tools to incentivize servicers to properly handle applications for loss mitigation assistance and require servicers to send loss mitigation notices to borrowers, which are especially critical as forbearances come to an end in the coming months.

Letters to Regulators: Letter from 35 groups to the SEC on Repairing Corporate America’s Broken Reporting Infrastructure

AFREF, alongside 34 other organizations, joined a letter The Consumer Federation of America (CFA) submitted on June 7th to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) raising concerns about the dire state of financial reporting in Corporate America.

A pair of hands writing on paper with a pen

Letters to Congress: Letter Urging Senators and Representatives to Ensure that Civil Rights Enforcement is Prioritized with Increased Funding in the FY 2022 Appropriations Cycle

AFR joined partners to send a letter to Congress urging senators and representatives to ensure that civil rights enforcement is prioritized with increased funding in the FY 2022 appropriations cycle. The letter calls on Congress to double the funding provided to each of the civil rights offices across the federal government so that they are able to adequately respond to complaints of discrimination; proactively ensure compliance with the laws they enforce; provide guidance, regulation, and technical assistance to prevent discrimination; and collect and report data on equal opportunity across all domains of American life.

Letter to the Regulators: letter from 26 organizations to the Department of Labor urging reconsideration of guidance allowing retirement plans to invest in Private Equity

26 organizations, led by the Consumer Federation of America urge reconsideration of the DOL policy allowing defined contribution plans to invest in private equity funds. Issues raised to the DOL over its original letter considering allowing such funds into private equity include: It fails to give

Letters to Congress: Letter in Support of the Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act

AFR and 68 organizations sent a letter to Congress in support of the Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act, which would extend the Military Lending Act’s 36% interest rate cap on consumer loans to all Americans.

Event: Regulating Megabanks: A Conference in Honor of Arthur Wilmarth

On May 24th, AFR Policy Director Marcus Stanley participated in a virtual conference organized by the University of Colorado Law School.

Congressional Testimony: Testimony of Andrew Park on SPACs Before the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship and Capital Markets

On May 24, 2021 at 12:00PM Eastern AFR’s Senior Policy Analyst Andrew Park testified before the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship, and Capital Markets on Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs). Download the full written testimony here. Written Testimony before the House Financial

Statement: Biden Executive Order on Climate Finance is a Strong Step

President Biden today issued an executive order that outlines the administration’s plan to manage the financial risks associated with the climate crisis. The order highlights the administration’s determination to use all the resources of the federal government to combat the threat that climate change poses to financial stability.