Americans for Financial Reform

Report Category: Policy & Analysis

New AFR/CRL poll: By a 3 to 1 margin, voters of all parties support restoring right to consumer class actions

“A recent poll conducted by Lake Research Partners and Chesapeake Beach Consulting finds voters strongly support restoring consumers’ right to bring class action lawsuits against banks and lenders instead of being forced to take individual cases to an arbitrator of the lender’s choosing. After hearing an argument for and against, voters of all political parties express majority support for federal action to restore these rights.”

Poll: 71 percent of Americans Support Regulation of Payday Lenders

“According to a new poll, conducted by GBA Strategies on behalf of Americans for Financial Reform, the Center for Responsible Lending, the National Council of La Raza, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, just 3 percent of registered voters have a favorable opinion of payday lenders. Yes, even used car salesmen and Wall Street banks are more well-liked than payday lenders.”

AFR Issue Brief: Fair Treatment of Homeowners with Limited English Proficiency

A newly released paper urges regulators to make it easier for people with limited English proficiency (LEP) to understand and navigate the financial system, especially the mortgage loan market. A companion paper tells the stories of several LEP homeowners who belatedly discovered unfavorable mortgage terms and had great difficulty securing loan modifications.

Fact Sheet: Community Banks Are Alive And Well Under Dodd-Frank

“Community Banks Have Returned to Profitability: The percentage of community banks that are profitable has increased every year since 2009. For the year 2015, over 95% of the nation’s 5,880 community banks showed a profit. This is up from 78% in 2010, the year Dodd-Frank passed.”

Fact Sheet: Budget Riders Watchlist, Stop Wall Street Giveaways

“Here are some of the major goals that the financial industry and its political allies hope to achieve through language attached to end-of-year appropriations bills. This list does not provide an exhaustive list of potential financial regulatory riders to funding bills, but does highlight the potential riders that have recently been most prominent in the debate. “