American Credit News

Pollsters are closely monitoring the East Coast states of Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia as Election Day approaches. A recent Washington Post poll from Pennsylvania highlights the tight race for the White House and its impact on down-ballot races.

A group of Democrat Senate and House members have reintroduced the Stopping Abuse and Fraud in Electronic (SAFE) Lending Act. This legislation, which has been introduced in the last two Congresses, faces opposition from the American Financial Services Association (AFSA). The bill seeks to prohibit convenience checks and require state-licensed installment lenders to register with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

Yesterday, former President Donald Trump addressed the economic challenges Americans have faced in recent years. He stated, "While working Americans catch up, we’re going to put a temporary cap on credit card interest rates. We’re going to cap it at around 10%. We can’t let them make 25 and 30%."

AFSA released its quarterly Consumer Credit (C3) Index survey of leading providers of consumer credit, including mortgages, vehicle financing, personal installment loans, and credit cards.

With 54 calendar and 12 session days until the election, Congress faces important unfinished business: funding the government. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) unveiled his continuing resolution that would provide stopgap funding through March 2025. Following some dissent, the first procedural vote was pulled from the calendar yesterday. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) is working to persuade a dozen Republican objectors to support the bill, stating that “everything is doable.”

AFSA’s State Government Affairs team has sent a veto letter to California Governor Gavin Newsom opposing Senate Bill 1286, which addresses small business debt and the Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The bill proposes expanding the Rosenthal Act to include commercial collections, a move AFSA has resisted in favor of exemptions for floor-planning members.

Interest rates at the far end of the yield curve are already declining, despite ongoing discussions about when and by how much the Federal Reserve will lower the federal funds rate. This trend is attributed to diminished market expectations for long-term inflation and near-future short-term rates.

Last week, AFSA’s State Government Affairs team released its September white paper on legislative trends in financial services.

In the latest episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, David Ralstin, Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer for Allied Solutions, joins the discussion. Ralstin's role at Allied Solutions involves governance, accountability, and advisory services for technology risk management and information security controls.

“Industry Expertise” is sponsored content produced by AFSA’s Business Partners to provide thought leadership and best practices for AFSA member companies. For more information about this sponsored content opportunity, contact Dan Bucherer.

Last week, Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN) introduced a Congressional Review Act (CRA) to address the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) nonbank registry rule related to enforcement. Representative Ogles has been a strong advocate for the financial services industry and expressed opposition to the registry when it was initially proposed. He stated that the “nonbank registry would impose severe and complex compliance measures on covered nonbank entities, including many small businesses. It’s an unnecessary, duplicative rule that pushes bureaucracy and costs onto...

The featured Business Partner for the month of September is Allied Solutions.

AFSA’s State Government Affairs team has petitioned the New Hampshire Bank Commissioner for an emergency rule or order concerning NH HB 1243. AFSA has been actively engaged with the New Hampshire Banking Department throughout the finalization process of HB 1243, which represents a significant overhaul of the state’s longstanding vehicle finance code.

Last week, the American Financial Services Association (AFSA) sent a letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), reiterating its enforcement concerns with the nonbank registry. AFSA has previously noted that the rule is overly broad and conflicts with various consumer protections already in place at both federal and state levels. According to AFSA, such a backward-looking registry could lead to multiple actions by multiple regulators for activities that have already been addressed.

Today, August 26th, AFSA marks the 104th anniversary of Women’s Equality Day and the significant achievement of the 19th Amendment’s ratification. This amendment, passed in 1919 and ratified in August 1920, made a historic change in the U.S. Constitution by enshrining women’s right to vote. As we celebrate this milestone, let’s renew our dedication to the ideals of equality and justice, acknowledging that the pursuit of gender equality continues to drive societal progress.

This week, the American Financial Services Association (AFSA) and other trade organizations filed an amicus brief supporting a vehicle finance company facing enforcement action from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The CFPB is attempting to amend settled law that has guided the financial services industry for decades through a suit against a single finance company, bypassing the formal notice-and-comment rulemaking process.

Back-to-school season is well underway, bringing with it the need for supplies, new clothes, books, and more. According to a National Retail Federation survey, back-to-school outlays for the coming academic year will amount to $39 billion, or $875 per household for the K-12 set, while the college-bound will spend an even larger $87 billion in aggregate, or $1,365 per household.

Yesterday, the American Financial Services Association (AFSA) submitted comments to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on its proposed rule concerning medical debt. In the letter, AFSA highlighted four specific issues with the proposed rule.

“Industry Expertise” is sponsored content produced by AFSA’s Business Partners to provide thought leadership and best practices for AFSA member companies. For more information about this sponsored content opportunity, contact Dan Bucherer.

This week, the American Financial Services Association (AFSA) joined DACO Investments, Westside Credit Corporation, Inc., Motorists Acceptance Corporation, and Challenge Financial Services in filing an Appellant’s Opening Brief in the 5th Circuit. AFSA's members, like many businesses across the country, experienced significant revenue shortfalls with the onset of the pandemic.