UnidosUS: Senate Vote Rolls Back Critical Consumer Protections Favoring Big Banks Over America’s Working Families

WASHINGTON, DC— Late yesterday, the Senate passed the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act, a proposal that rolls back important provisions of the Dodd-Frank bill. Dodd-Frank was enacted in 2010 because the financial crisis had devastated the nation’s middle and working classes through predatory lending practices and a lack of regulations on the nation’s biggest banks and mortgage lenders.

“The passage of this bill once again exposes American consumers, including millions of Latinos, to the same abusive lending practices that led to the crisis just a decade ago. Weakening these rules strip working families of the protections put in place to prevent discrimination and abuse,” said Eric Rodriguez, Vice President, UnidosUS.

The Senate bill will allow more banks to escape oversight and weakens rules that require banks and lenders to report data that can help uncover discrimination under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HDMA). Discrimination in lending is still a widespread problem. According to a new UnidosUS analysis of HDMA data, Latinos are receiving more loans than in past years, but are still more likely than Whites to be denied for a mortgage, pay higher fees and see higher mortgage payments.

“Our elected officials should be in the business of helping protect their constituent consumers from unscrupulous lending and banking practices. Instead, they are once again, easing up oversight and restrictions that help hold the lending industry accountable and the American people safe,” concluded Rodriguez.