AG: States Need Their Power Back

TheDay.com (04/30/08); Howard, Lee
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has criticized the Bush administration for issuing a rule that prevents states from enforcing predatory-lending and other consumer-protection laws against national lenders. In testimony before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation in Washington, D.C., Blumenthal called on legislators to pass a bill that would give the Federal Trade Commission the authority to regulate subprime loan marketing and give states the power of enforcement. "At present, rather than encouraging or enabling effective state enforcement, federal agencies have been an impediment and obstacle," Blumenthal said of the White House's efforts to pre-empt state laws. He added that the federal government needs to become more of a partner with states on the issue of consumer protection, by studying their laws and enacting the best statutes nationwide but still giving states the leeway to craft more stringent protections.