FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 2, 2019
Contact: Matt Baca (505) 270-7148
Albuquerque, NM—Today, Attorney General Hector Balderas joined a coalition of 25 State
Attorneys General in opposing any effort by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
to roll back or limit its Overdraft Rule. The rule, currently in place, permits banks to charge fees
to consumers for overdraft services on ATM and one-time debit transactions only after
consumers have been provided with important information about those services and fees in a
model notice, and only after those consumers have made the affirmative choice to opt in to
such services.
“The CFPB leadership continues to put bank profits over people and gut critical protections that
harm the most vulnerable New Mexican families,” said Attorney General Balderas. “New
Mexicans deserve a fair opportunity to participate in our financial system, and I will continue to
fight these continued efforts to strip away protections and harm our families.”
The Overdraft Rule — which went into effect in 2010 — recognized that many consumers
received overdraft services by default, but were never given clear information about their
options and the fees their financial institutions charge. In fact, some studies released by the
CFPB have shown that median fees can cost as much as 68-percent of median overdrafted
transactions. For example, when the median overdrafted transaction was $50, the median fees
charged were $34.
The CFPB’s data shows that only about 16-percent of consumers have chosen to affirmatively
opt into overdraft services under the Overdraft Rule, which has benefitted millions of
Americans and led to a significant reduction in the total number and amount of overdraft fees.
In their letter, the Attorneys General specifically emphasized that there is no basis to believe
that the Overdraft Rule would place any additional economic burden or cost on small financial
institutions, and that compliance has both been straightforward and used a model form
designed for simplicity and cost-savings. Inversely, the CFPB has not published any data or
research to demonstrate any economic burden as a result of the Overdraft Rule.
Joining Attorney General Balderas in submitting comments to the CFPB were the Attorneys
General of New York, California, Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois,
Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada,
New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and
Washington, as well as the Executive Director of the Hawaii Office of Consumer Protection.
