April, 26 2016, 01:30pm EDT
Offshore Drilling Opponents Rally Outside D.C. Hearing
WASHINGTON
On Tuesday, April 26, the Obama Administration is holding a meeting to hear feedback on the proposed 2017-2022 offshore drilling program. Advocates concerned about climate change and the health of their communities will gather outside the D.C. meeting to celebrate their victory over Big Oil in the Atlantic Ocean, and call on President Obama to end new drilling in the Arctic region and the Gulf of Mexico.
What: Advocates rally against offshore drilling outside the D.C. hearing; a crowd of 100+ will rally with signs, a billboard, and colorful banners that read "No Offshore Drilling" and "Keep It In the Ground."
Who: Speakers include:
Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
Michael Brune, Executive Director, Sierra Club
Rev. Lennox Yearwood, President and CEO, Hip Hop Caucus
Besse Odom, Anchorage NAACP Youth Council Vice President
Laura Wood Habr, Virginia Beach business owner and community activist
Bernadette Demientieff, Alaska Native activist and Acting Executive Director of the Gwich'in Steering Committee
Where: Corner of 12th and G St NW, Washington, D.C. In the park by the Metro Center escalator, adjacent to the Metro Center Marriott at 775 12th Street NW.
When: 5:00 p.m., Tuesday April 26, 2015 (BOEM meeting from 3:00-7:00 p.m.)
Why: The movement to stop offshore drilling has mobilized millions of Americans across the country. Last month, in response to relentless grassroots organizing, the Obama Administration excluded the Atlantic coast from the next 2017-2022 offshore drilling program. Now, front line communities and climate activists are banding together to call on President Obama to also protect Arctic and Gulf communities from the dangers of offshore drilling.
Groups organizing the event include: 350.org, Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, League of Conservation Voters, Alaska Wilderness League, Hip Hop Caucus, Center for Biological Diversity, Environment America, Friends of the Earth U.S., Indigenous Environmental Network, Oil Change International, Greenpeace USA, Rainforest Action Network, and Redoil.
Friends of the Earth fights for a more healthy and just world. Together we speak truth to power and expose those who endanger the health of people and the planet for corporate profit. We organize to build long-term political power and campaign to change the rules of our economic and political systems that create injustice and destroy nature.
(202) 783-7400LATEST NEWS
New Rule From Agency Trump Wants Destroyed Would Save Consumers $5 Billion Per Year in Overdraft Fees
One advocate called the CFPB's new rule "a major milestone in its effort to level the playing field between regular people and big banks."
Dec 12, 2024
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, one of President-elect Donald Trump's top expected targets as he plans to dismantle parts of the federal government after taking office in January, announced on Thursday its latest action aimed at saving households across the U.S. hundreds of dollars in fees each year.
The agency issued a final rule to close a 55-year-old loophole that has allowed big banks to collect billions of dollars in overdraft fees from consumers each year,
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The rule is set to go into effect next October, but the incoming Trump administration could put its implementation in jeopardy. Trump has named billionaire Tesla CEO Elon Musk to co-lead the Department of Government Efficiency, an advisory body he hopes to create. Musk has signaled that he wants to "delete" the CFPB, echoing a proposal within the right-wing policy agenda Project 2025, which was co-authored by many officials from the first Trump term.
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The Federal Reserve Board exempted banks from Truth in Lending Act protections in 1969, allowing them to charge overdraft fees without disclosing their terms to consumers.
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Government watchdog Accountable.US credited the CFPB with cracking down on overdraft fees despite aggressive campaigning against the action by Wall Street, which has claimed the fees have benefits for American families.
Accountable.US noted that Republican Reps. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina and Andy Barr of Kentucky have appeared to lift their criticisms of the rule straight from industry talking points, claiming that reforming overdraft fee rules would "limit consumer choice, stifle innovation, and ultimately raise the cost of banking for all consumers."
Similarly, in April Barr claimed at a hearing that "the vast majority of Americans" believe credit card late fees are legitimate after the Biden administration unveiled a rule capping the fees at $8.
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The new overdraft fee rule follows a $95 million enforcement action against Navy Federal Credit Union for illegal surprise overdraft fees and similar actions against Wells Fargo, Regions Bank, and Atlantic Union.
Consumers have saved $6 billion annually through the CFPB's initiative to curb junk fees, which has led multiple banks to reduce or eliminate their fees.
"Big banks that charge high fees for overdrafts are not providing a courtesy to consumers—it's a form of predatory lending that exacerbates wealth disparities and racial inequalities," said Carla Sanchez-Adams, senior attorney at NCLC. "The CFPB's overdraft rule ensures that the most vulnerable consumers are protected from big banks trying to pad their profits with junk fees."
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President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday that he has chosen Kari Lake, a far-right election denier and failed U.S. Senate candidate, to lead the federally funded international broadcast network Voice of America, a move that critics said underscores Trump's effort to transform government entities into vehicles to advance his own interests.
In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote that as director of VOA, Lake would "ensure that the American values of Freedom and Liberty are broadcast around the World FAIRLY and ACCURATELY, unlike the lies spread by the Fake News Media."
Lake, a former television news anchor in Arizona who has echoed Trump's insidious attacks on journalists, wrote in response to the president-elect's announcement that she was "honored" to be asked to lead VOA, which she characterized as "a vital international media outlet dedicated to advancing the interests of the United States by engaging directly with people across the globe and promoting democracy and truth." VOA, which is supposed to have editorial independence, has long faced criticism for its coverage and treatment of employees.
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