Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund (AFREF) applauds the Labor Department for issuing this proposal to better allow and encourage retirement plans and pensions to consider sustainability factors like workers’ rights, racial justice, corporate governance, and climate change when investing. The post News Release: Labor Department: Retirement Plans and Pensions Right To Consider Sustainability, Jobs, […]
Hundreds of companies owned or backed by some of the most well financed private equity firms in the US secured an estimated $5.3 billion in public funds under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), reveals a new investigation published today. The post News Release: Companies Backed by Giant Private Equity Firms […]
Nineteen organizations and individuals that advocate on behalf of consumers, workers, investors and retirees have called on the Department of Labor to withdraw its controversial policy statement opening the door to private equity investments in 401(k) plans.
The COVID-19 pandemic requires an aggressive economic response that creates the best possible conditions to preserve public health and helps individuals, families, and communities weather the disruptions that efforts to contain the pandemic require.
“HUD’s proposed rule makes it virtually impossible for a disparate impact claim to stand in court,” says Linda Jun, senior policy counsel for Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund. “By raising the threshold for disparate impact, the new rule creates a nearly unsurmountable bar for plaintiffs to prove discriminatory outcomes and makes it much easier for defendants to shield themselves from any responsibility for discrimination.”
Tomorrow marks one hundred fifty days since Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Kathy Kraninger committed to quickly filling the nation’s top student loan watchdog position—a role that has been vacant for almost a year. As student debt nears $1.6 trillion and predatory practices plague the market, the Student Borrower Protection Center (SBPC) and Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund (AFREF) are releasing a roundup of failures by the current CFPB Director to stand up for student loan borrowers.
Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund, as part of a coalition of civil rights, consumer, and labor groups, submitted an official comment letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau excoriating CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger’s proposal to gut a 2017 rule that was issued to stop payday loan debt traps. The coalition’s comment letter, submitted on the last day of the comment period, is a comprehensive rebuttal to Kraninger’s rationales for rolling back consumer protections on payday loans.
letter to CRAs urging credit relief for federal contractors and small businesses affected by shutdown
Letter to CRAs urging credit relief for consumers affected by natural disasters
The rule, which was years in the making, created vital protections for consumers of payday, car title, and some longer-term loans to ensure that predatory lenders don’t trap customers in unaffordable loans. Underlying the rule is the common-sense principle that lenders should consider whether borrowers have the ability to repay a loan before they risk their financial well-being.