ACTION: Wall Street reform at risk
We all know what can happen on Wall Street if there are no rules and no accountability.
That's why Fair Share supports the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Consumer Bureau) -- to watch out for predatory and deceptive behavior in the financial industry. And it's working. It has returned $12 billion to 27 million Americans who were victimized by shady lending or financial trickery.
Some in Congress are pushing to shut down the CFPB. But if we can get just 41 votes to protect the agency, we can create a firewall in the Senate.
You should be able to save, invest and manage important financial decisions without the fear of being ripped off. And we all want fair, clear, transparent, and enforced rules that protect consumers in the financial marketplace.
That’s the mission of the CFPB, a law enforcement agency that ensures financial service providers play by the rules.
The CFPB has been incredibly effective. Just last month, the bureau sued Navient — formerly Sallie Mae, a loan servicer used by students — for improperly processing loan payments. And they’re the agency that fined Wells Fargo $100 million for fraud in September and ordered Citibank to pay $5 million in consumer relief for illegal debt sales and debt collection practices.
In spite of the success of the agency, the financial industry is spending millions to convince members in Congress to weaken or even dismantle this agency and other Wall Street reforms.
We will lose this fight if Congress only hears from the banking lobbyists. If we raise enough awareness and inspire enough action, we can win.