We were saddened to recently learn of the passing of Randy Lively, and as 2019 closes we take a moment to recognize his life and salute his service to our industry.

The American Financial Services Association (AFSA) announced the promotion of Celia Winslow to Senior Vice President effective January 1, 2020.

Let’s call it the “Recurring Nightmare Before Christmas,” as Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Doug Jones (D-AL), and Tom Cotton (R-AR) reintroduce the Unsolicited Loan Act, a bill that would ban “live” checks.

Join us on January 22, 2020 for Top Debt Collection Issues in 2020, presented by AFSA.

The Credit Union Journal published a story (subscription required) regarding a provision excluded from the final version of the House-approved National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The language would have granted banks the same rent-free access to land on military bases as credit unions currently enjoy. At the same time, “Explore Credit Unions” was Tweeting that “Forty percent of banks on military bases have closed their doors over the past 15 years as credit unions receive special treatment from Department of Defense,” and noting that military and families and DoD civilians were the real losers in the shifting competition among financial services institutions. In a time when servicemembers and their families are increasingly concerned about their financial futures, and are feeling fiscally pressured, they should have access to more financial services options – not fewer – to meet their needs and to address their concerns. The Department of Defense – and by extension Congress – are tasked with giving our military every tool to gain an advantage in the field of battle and in the defense and protection of our nation. That they would place a thumb on the scale to advantage one set of financial institutions over others – and limit the ability of servicemembers and their families to get the financial assistance they may require, is discouraging. It’s not just traditional banks that are disadvantaged. AFSA members who offer a wide variety of consumer credit products – from traditional installment loans to vehicle financing options – also have a difficult time serving servicemembers with products, largely due to short-sighted policy decisions.It’s time for policymakers on Capitol Hill and in the Department of Defense, as well as the financial services industry to come together and identify an approach that gives servicemembers the opportunity to access to more financial-services resources – and not just a select few.

AFSA yesterday submitted a comment letter to Senate Committee on Banking Housing & Urban Affairs Chair Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Ranking Member Sherrod Brown (D-OH) opposing S. 2839, the Eliminating Corporate Shadow Banking Act of 2019.

AFSA staff attended the FTC/CFPB Workshop on Accuracy in Consumer Reporting on December 10, 2019. The Workshop assembled panels to discuss various aspects of the credit reporting system and steps that policymakers, furnishers, consumer reporting agencies, and others can take to improve the accuracy of consumer reports.

The American Financial Services Association today submitted a comment letter to the House Financial Services Committee regarding to H.R. 5332, the “Protecting Your Credit Score Act of 2019.” The bill, which is being marked up by the committee, which could lead to a potential vote by the full House. The letter outlines the important symbiotic relationship between lending and credit reporting systems that benefits American consumers when it functions well. The letter focused on two areas:

Last week, AFSA’s State Government Affairs team attended three hearings held by the California Attorney General’s Office on the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Fresno. The AG’s office released proposed regulations implementing the CCPA in October and is accepting written feedback until December 6. These hearings, which each drew over a hundred attendees, provided an opportunity to provide verbal comments on the AG’s proposed regulations.