Waters Slams Effort to Use Congressional Review Act to Repeal Payday Lending Rule

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, in response to the introduction of a resolution to use the Congressional Review Act to repeal the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s recently issued rule on payday, vehicle title, and certain high-cost installment loans, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, made the following statement:

“Once again, Republicans are shamelessly pushing to roll back an important rule that protects consumers.

“This year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a sensible and much needed rule to put a stop to abusive payday loans. The rule requires lenders to ensure that consumers can actually afford to pay off their payday loans. This is important because payday loans usually have interest rates of 300 percent or more, and borrowers frequently take out new loans to pay off old ones because the loans were never affordable in the first place. The Consumer Bureau's rule would end this debt trap by making sure that borrowers can repay a loan before they receive it. This is common sense and protects the lender and the borrower from the consequences of default. However, Republicans are moving to repeal the rule and strip away those protections in a massive giveaway to payday loan sharks.

“Far too many hardworking Americans have been caught in the debt trap of high-cost, predatory payday loans. Congress must not make it easier for payday lenders to put hardworking consumers into debt traps again. Americans deserve better than this. The Consumer Bureau’s rule must not be repealed.”

Under the Trump Administration, Congressional Republicans have used the Congressional Review Act to rescind 15 regulations. Before the Trump Administration, the Congressional Review Act had only once before been used to block a regulation.

In October, Waters praised the Consumer Bureau for its final payday rule.

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