The Urban Institute has documented that, even before the COVID-19 pandemic, 31% of adults in the United States with credit reports have debt in collection. That number goes up to 42% for those residing in communities of color.
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.
AFR released recommendations for “Day One” policy actions by the Biden Administration in the areas of banking regulation, securities and markets regulation, and addressing systemic risk. These are actions that could be taken without a lengthy rulemaking and would make immediate progress toward a fairer
Next month, Joe Biden is going confront not only a terrible pandemic but also a pressing economic challenge. And this challenge is unfolding beyond Washington as the sum of thousands of smaller economic challenges being felt in statehouses, county seats, and city halls all across the country. Fortunately, there are tools at hand that President Biden can use. But he’ll have to be bold.
Private equity pillaging of the retail industry has cost over half a million jobs amid over 18,000 store closures through February 2020, according to a new study, the first to examine job losses at the state level. The job losses occurred in every state, with more than 10,000 jobs lost in 20 states and more than 30,000 lost in California, Florida, and New York.
The FDIC’s ILC rule threatens state-level consumer protections, further erodes the traditional separation between banking and commerce, and jeopardizes the safety and soundness of the financial system and the economy as a whole.
Private equity has had a disastrous impact on the retail industry, driving dozens of firms into bankruptcy, shutting down tens of thousands of stores, and costing hundreds of thousands of jobs nationwide.
Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund signs onto a letter from Consumer Federation of America opposing the PCAOB’s proposal to weaken auditor independence standards. The proposed rule will undermine investors’ faith in the reliability of financial disclosures, and risk the integrity of our capital markets. Furthermore, the PCAOB has abused process by adopting these changes without opportunity for public comment and hurrying the SEC approval process without justification. The undersigned urge the SEC to deny the requested rule change.
AFR released policy recommendations to strengthen consumer financial protections and work towards reversing the damage caused by systemic racism, and products and systems that amplify inequality.
Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund, Center for Responsible Lending, National Consumer Law Center, National Fair Housing Alliance, and Student Borrower Protection Center sent a joint letter urging HUD to transition to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) and share its LIBOR transition plan as soon as possible. This transition plan should include providing direction to housing counselors about the process and a targeted outreach plan to provide borrowers and all stakeholders with timely, accurate information so that they know what to expect in the months to come.