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Attorney General Josh Stein Urges Secretary Betsy DeVos to Stop Rolling Back Critical Protections for Student Borrowers

Release date:
9/26/2017

(RALEIGH) Attorney General Josh Stein today urged U.S. Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos to stop her Department from rolling back critical protections for student loan borrowers.

“More than 60 percent of North Carolina’s college graduates have student loan debt,” said Attorney General Josh Stein. “Protecting those students from scams and fraud must be a top priority. That is why I am urging Secretary DeVos to prioritize students over lenders.”

Attorney General Stein’s letter, which was also signed by 18 other attorneys general, takes issue with the Department of Education’s termination of two key memoranda of understanding it had with to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. More information is below:

  • The Department of Education falsely asserted it has exclusive jurisdiction over companies that service federal student loans when, in fact, student loan servicers are under the jurisdiction of the CFPB, Federal Trade Commission, Department of Justice, Attorneys General and other law enforcement agencies.
  • The letter is the latest in a series of actions by the Department of Education to strip critical protections for millions of students and families repaying student loans.
  • The Department of Education misrepresents the strong work done by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on behalf of students and families across the country.

Full text of the letter is here.

Attorneys General from California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington, as well as the executive director of the Hawaii Office of Consumer Protection also signed the letter.

Contact:
Laura Brewer (919) 716-6484

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