“After finally addressing the fee waiver tax abuse after all of these years, the least the IRS can do is to vigorously enforce the law for all open years. Anything less would accurately be described as a tax amnesty program for billionaires.”
“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.”
“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. “
“The expansion of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) under the TPP poses a significant threat to financial regulations being put in place in the US and around the world in the wake of the financial crisis. It could allow financial companies to challenge new rules put in place to protect consumers and investors or ensure the stability of the financial system, and force U.S. taxpayers to pay for any losses in profits claimed due to these rules.”
AFR provided comments to the Federal Reserve on a proposal to require more capital for the largest banks. While supporting the idea of additional capital for these banks, AFR’s comment criticized the level as too low.
AFR submitted a comment letter to the Financial Stability Oversight Council supporting the FSOC’s engagement in asset management activities.
At a CFPB hearing in Richmond, Va., AFR delivered a letter in which a remarkable array of civil rights, faith, economic justice, elder, community and civic organizations – 500 altogether, including groups from all 50 states – applaud the CFPB for its commitment to this issue and urge it to develop and implement regulations that finally put payday, car-title and other small-dollar lenders “on the same footing as other lenders, requiring them to play by the rules and make fair loans.”
“Few practices are as abusive, unfair, and deceptive as the widespread use of forced arbitration clauses in most consumer contracts, including credit cards, student loans, debt settlement, credit repair, auto financing, and payday loans. Forced arbitration funnels consumers into a private system set up by corporations to protect and hide harmful and unlawful corporate behavior.”
“While the [proposed] rules are generally strong, we offer several suggestions below for strengthening the rules and closing loopholes. In particular, the CFPB should ban all overdraft fees; apply credit card protections to all credit transferred to a linked prepaid card; and limit fees before account opening and beyond the first year. We also urge the CFPB to require prepaid card funds to be held in accounts protected by deposit insurance and to adopt stronger rules to prevent coercive use of payroll, public benefit, student, released prisoner and other prepaid cards.”
“Republicans in the House of Representatives have come out with a budget proposal that, while vague on many points, is all too specific in its attack on Wall Street regulation, the Dodd-Frank Act, and the work of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The proposal would tie financial (and other) regulators up in procedural knots… In addition, it would eliminate a key mechanism for the safe unwinding of a big bank in the event of failure; undermine the ability of regulators to detect and curb systemically dangerous practices; and end the independent funding of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.”