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Dear Member,
This week’s Washington Update is all about the CFPA
– the proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency – what
you need to know about it, what we’re doing about it, and what we
need you to do about it. Read on.
CFPA: Congressional Contact Campaign
Now is the time to start writing to your Members of Congress to
oppose the CFPA. As you know, this proposed agency could end up
regulating check cashing, money transfers, money orders, small-dollar
loans – in short, just about every product that Financial Service
Centers offer. It would be a bureaucratic nightmare. We need
your help by voicing to Congress your opposition.
It is very easy to participate in the Congressional Contact
Campaign:
- Click here
to go to the CFC
website and find your member of Congress.
- Once you are on the page with the listings of your representatives,
click the link to view the sample letters we have created for
your use.
- Copy the contents of the sample letter you choose, click on the link
provided next to the name of your Congressional representative and paste
the letter into the form provided. You can then modify it to your liking
before emailing it.
- Pass this information on to your employees, friends, family and
anyone else you can find to lend their voice to this all-important
effort.
CFPA: Efforts Underway in the Northeast
Ed D’Alessio, FiSCA’s Deputy General Counsel, is
coordinating Congressional contact efforts in New York and New Jersey,
working with both state associations and key store owners. Contact is
already underway as part of the CFC strategy to engage owners at the
state and local level. New York and New Jersey have key Members
of Congress on committees of jurisdiction and will be influential on the
possible passage of CFPA legislation.
CFPA: Lobbying Coordination
A meeting is being held in Washington, D.C., to coordinate
the Washington lobbyists currently on retainer by several FiSCA members.
The coordination will more effectively focus the depth of
expertise already in place as the joint FiSCA/CFC strategy on CFPA
becomes more aggressively implemented.
CFPA: Don’t Become
Complacent!
Some think that with the recent election of Scott Brown, to fill the
Massachusetts Senate seat, and with the announcement of Senate Banking
Committee Chairman Chris Dodd’s retirement all our worries are
over. Far from it! Brown’s election is no guarantee
of any outcome as far as the CFPA is concerned. And Chris Dodd may
well want the passage of a CFPA bill to be part of his legacy, now that
his time in the Senate is nearing its end. And we know that President
Obama still wants some form of CFPA legislation to pass this year as
well. We cannot be lulled into complacency, and risk thinking CFPA may
not happen. Too much is at stake. The time for action is now.
For more on the possible ramifications of the CFPA on you and your
business, take a look at the
presentation that Wright Andrews made at the FiSCA
Conference.
That’s all for this week. Feel free to contact Bill Sellery or Theresa Murzyn for any
additional information you might need to get the word out to
Congress. Stop the CFPA!
About FiSCA
FiSCA, founded in 1987, is the national trade association for more
than 6,500 individual financial service centers across the United
States.
About CFC
The Coalition for Financial Choice is comprised of companies, trade
associations and other organizations that believe that all Americans are
entitled to basic fundamental rights with regard to financial services.
The mission of the Coalition is to:
Advocate for equal access to financial services and credit for all
consumers Encourage innovation in providing financial services in order
to lower consumer costs
Improve consumer protections through education, disclosure and
transparency in all financial transactions
Help consumers build credit and provide them with opportunities to
create savings and build wealth
To learn more or to join visit the
Coalition for Financial Choice.
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