We sued the Trump Administration.  

Recently, we filed a federal lawsuit against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) for unlawfully abandoning critical small business lending data collection rules that create transparency across the financial sector. 

The Stakes:

Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act requires banks to collect demographic information on small business loans for women-owned, minority-owned and small businesses. This rule would bring more access to credit, financial products for small businesses and transparency to lending data.  After more than a decade of inaction, the CFPB published the final Section 1071 Rule in 2023 but only under legal compulsion.  The Trump administration has abandoned the implementation of the rule despite the legal order in the prior lawsuit. This abandonment strips advocates, like NCRC, of the data needed to carry out many of its activities and denies small business owners across America equal access to credit. 

Our Response:

NCRC demands accountability. The CFPB must enforce this rule and ensure financial institutions are meeting the needs of small business owners across the country. That is why we partnered with Rise Economy, Main Street Alliance, and ReShonda Young, an Iowa small business owner, to file this lawsuit (Rise Economy et al v. Vought).

NCRC is using every tool, including legal action, to ensure the federal government is carrying out its duties under law. 

“The American people deserve an economy where any entrepreneur can get a fair shake from lenders, which is only possible if we have the data that will be collected under Section 1071," said Jesse Van Tol, President and CEO of NCRC. 

Why Now?

After more than a decade of inaction and continued threats to Section 1071, NCRC can no longer rely on good faith and assume the CFPB is working on implementation. NCRC is taking the CFPB’s word that enforcement of this rule is not a priority now and demand the CFPB enforce the rule as mandated by law. The lawsuit clearly outlines that the implementation of this rule is mandated by law and it cannot simply be de-prioritized by an administration’s executive decision.  

Our Ask: 

We’re calling on your support as we pursue this federal case alongside our ongoing community reinvestment work. This fight for economic justice requires both community organizing and legal action. NCRC is uniquely positioned to deliver both with your continued support. 

Help us complete our mission, and together, make a Just Economy a national priority and a local reality. 

In solidarity,

Team NCRC