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Statement

STATEMENT OF KRISTIN ROWE-FINKBEINER, Executive Director, CEO and Co-Founder, MomsRising on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Proposal to Revise the CARD Act

October 18, 2012
Maternal Health

Lisa Lederer, 202-371-1996

“We are delighted that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) agrees with our position that stay-at-home moms, spouses and domestic partners shouldn’t be prevented from getting credit cards because they don’t have their own income or assets.  We applaud the CFPB for taking quick action to restore stay-at-home parents' access to fair credit.  The proposal set forth yesterday to change the Credit Card Accountability and Disclosure (CARD) Act to allow credit-worthy people to get credit cards by relying on third party income represents a victory for stay-at-home moms, dads and partners across the country.
 
 “In many families, the partner who doesn’t work outside the home is responsible for family finances, including buying groceries, purchasing goods and services for the home and much more. Increasingly, a credit card is an absolute necessity for these purchases and for establishing long-term credit.  Preventing a mom who has managed her family’s budget for years from holding her own credit card clearly never the intent of the CARD Act and we’re glad to see the CFPB address this flaw in the law.
 
“We want to thank our member, Holly McCall, for drawing attention to this problem and Congresswomen Carolyn Maloney and Shelley Capito for their work to get the rule changed. We also thank our members and the more than 40,000 moms and others who signed our petition protesting the law for their efforts.
 
“Moms are an important economic force. Hopefully the presidential candidates, and other government officials, will learn from the CFPB and begin to address the specific economic concerns of moms.”
 

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MomsRising.org is an on-the-ground and online grassroots organization of more than a million people who are working to increase family economic security, decrease discrimination against women and moms, and to build a nation where businesses and families can thrive. Established in 2006, MomsRising and its members are organizing and speaking out to improve public policy and to change the national dialogue on issues that are critically important to America’s families, including criminal justice reform, immigration policy reform, and gun safety. MomsRising is working for paid family and medical leave, affordable, high quality childcare and early learning, and for an end to the wage and hiring discrimination which penalizes women — particularly moms and women of color — and so many others. MomsRising advocates for access to healthy food for all kids, health care for all, earned sick days, and breastfeeding rights so that all children can have a healthy start. MomsRising maintains a Spanish language website: MamásConPoder.org. Sign up online at www.MomsRising.org — and follow us on our blog, and on Twitter and Facebook.