Table of Contents

“Buy Now, Pay Later” is not always the best deal for consumers
Consumer Action joined public interest organizations in submitting a letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) concerning Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) credit products. The groups are alarmed by the lack of regulation of this credit product, which is exploding in use, and they urged the CFPB to view BNPL products as credit cards (which are covered by the Truth in Lending Act [TILA]), to start supervision of this market, and to look out for practices that harm consumers.

Protect retirees and savers from conflicted investment advice
A broad coalition of leading worker, consumer and investor advocates has urged the Department of Labor (DOL) to quickly update and strengthen the rules governing retirement investment advice to help protect workers and retirees from harmful conflicts of interest. Conflicted retirement investment advice costs retirement savers tens of billions of dollars every year.

Stronger CRA rules still needed to ensure equal access to credit
With a new proposal imminent from federal bank regulators, community, civil rights and consumer advocacy groups stress the urgency of updating the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The CRA is a civil rights era law meant to end and reverse the impact of 20th century redlining by requiring banks to lend in all communities where they are chartered to do business. Critical changes to both the process and metrics of CRA exams that evaluate lender performance, as well as updates to how digital banks are assessed, are needed to ensure that communities of color have equal access to credit to buy homes or build and grow businesses.

Addressing credit issues that arise after transgender and nonbinary consumers change their name
Consumer Action joined over 140 organizations in sending a letter to the “Big Three” credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) urging them to take needed actions to correct credit report problems for transgender and nonbinary consumers. After a legal name change, many transgender and nonbinary consumers end up with multiple credit files in different names and suffer a loss of credit history and score as a result. Additionally, credit reports “out” trans and nonbinary people to landlords, employers and lenders when they apply for loans, jobs and housing because the report still includes their deadname.

The system is broken: It’s time for income-driven repayment reform
A group of 104 diverse advocacy organizations sent a letter to the Biden administration, calling on U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona to reform broken, dysfunctional income-driven repayment (IDR) programs with the creation of an IDR restoration project or waiver. While student loan cancellation under IDR has been possible since 2016, just 32 borrowers have ever successfully had their loans cancelled. At the same time, over 4.4 million borrowers have been in repayment for 20 years or longer, despite theoretically being able to access forgiveness via IDR.

Regulators should reject FinTech startup’s bank charter application
Advocates called upon federal banking regulators to reject a worrisome and inadequate bank charter application recently filed by Figure Bank, National Association. The coalition warns that the FinTech company’s bank application is silent about core issues of honesty, transparency and sustainability. Federal banking regulators are the public’s first line of defense. They have a duty to protect the public from investors who are more interested in lining their own pockets than in helping their customers and communities build wealth.

Ensure that banks equitably and justly invest in our communities
A coalition of 60 groups wrote a letter urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to develop a strong rule requiring small business lenders to report on the race, ethnicity and gender of their borrowers, the neighborhoods where they lend, and what they charge for their loans. Members of the coalition have been advocating for small business data collection and transparency within the small business market for decades. Robust small business data collection through the Section 1071 rule will result in enhanced transparency, more responsible lending practices, targeted enforcement of fair lending laws, informed policymaking, healthier markets, and reduced racial and gender wealth gaps.

The CFPB must protect consumers from fraud in payment systems
Consumer Action was one of the 65 consumer, civil rights, faith, legal services and community groups that submitted comments to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in response to its inquiry into certain business practices of six large technology companies operating payments systems in the United States. The groups urged the CFPB to require person-to-person (P2P) payment providers to protect consumers from fraud and errors and to work with the Federal Reserve Board to ensure protections are in place before the Fed launches its new FedNow P2P service.

Biden should remove FDIC Chair for refusing to follow the law
Twenty-two organizations called on President Joe Biden to remove Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) Chair Jelena McWilliams for violating the agency’s statutes and bylaws that provide for majority rule. McWilliams has refused to allow publication in the Federal Register of a request authorized by three of the four board members for public input on the FDIC’s bank merger policy, proving that she is not fit to serve as Chair.

As the pandemic continues, the Build Back Better Act aims to provide critical assistance to American families
Consumer Action joined over 200 national, state and community organizations in thanking the House of Representatives for the momentous gains made in the Build Back Better Act, reinforcing the need to keep the package intact as it makes its way through the Senate, and urging swift passage onto signature by President Biden. By passing the historic Build Back Better bill, Congress is tackling some of the most important problems families face, by accomplishing things such as cutting taxes for working and middle class families, supporting child and elder care, making college more affordable, providing job training, and making the largest investment in battling climate change in our nation’s history.