We've received the following Call for Papers: Economic Inquiry is excited to announce a Symposium on the Economics of Consumer Protection. The goal of this symposium is to create a unique reference on consumer protection economics topics that would (a) synthesize what is known about the current state of economic analyses of consumer protection law enforcement and policy, […]
by Jeff Sovern As others, including Adam Levitin and David Lazarus have pointed out, the CFPB recently modified its description of itself at the bottom of its press releases. Here is the old version: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is a 21st century agency that helps consumer finance markets work by making rules more effective, […]
The story is headlined Trump's Wells Fargo tweet cited in court hearing as reason to remove Mulvaney as CFPB acting chief. The tweet said Fines and penalties against Wells Fargo Bank for their bad acts against their customers and others will not be dropped, as has incorrectly been reported, but will be pursued and, if anything, […]
The American Banker''s Kate Berry has a report on the hearing here; it is not optimistic about English's chances. Meanwhile, the WSJ has a story headlined The Internal Divide Behind Trump’s Takeover of Consumer Watchdog about how White House conservatives want to dismantle the Bureau while the Treasury sees a role for the Bureau. Mulvaney's appointment is seen […]
I should have posted this story yesterday: The Department of Education on Wednesday announced new rules for providing aid to students claiming they were defrauded by their colleges that limits some student loan refunds according to income. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said the new system "protects taxpayers from being forced to shoulder massive costs that […]
The Supreme Court of California today issued a decision on an important question for many consumers. In T.H. v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp., the question before the court was whether brand-name drug manufacturers can be held liable for injuries caused by inadequately labeled generic drugs. The question arose primarily because, under regulations of the Food and […]
Take a look at the complaint in Communications Workers of America v. T-Mobile US, Inc., et al., No. 17-cv-07232 (N.D. Cal.). It's a plaintiffs' class action naming a defendant class of hundreds of companies that have allegedly used recruitment ads on Facebook to target young people and thus discriminate against older potential job applicants. Here's the first […]
The Washington Post today had two stories on the Federal Communications Commission's repeal of the net neutrality rule that are worth reading: First, in "The net neutrality lawsuits are coming. Here’s what they’re likely to say," technology correspondent Brian Fung anticipates the arguments of state attorneys general and consumer groups expected to challenge the repeal […]
Tax reform was going to be tax simplification. Tax returns on post cards. Right. Read this piece by John Cassidy explaining that besides its "unfairness" and "corrupt nature," [w]hat isn’t yet fully appreciated" about the Trump tax legislation is how porous and potentially unstable the rest of the tax code will be after the bill is passed. […]
by Jeff Sovern Advocates for some positions sometimes block the federal government from researching or supporting research on issues. For example, supporters of gun rights have long had the votes to prevent the government from obtaining data about gun safety. See, e.g., Newsweek's report titled THE GOVERNMENT WON'T FUND RESEARCH ON GUN VIOLENCE BECAUSE OF […]