Here’s an interesting document from 2003 which describes a Bush era federal rules change that invalidated state laws limiting usurious and unsafe banking practices.
http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2003/pdf/03-19906.pdf
Choice quotes:
A Federal district court in
Des Moines declared a longstanding
Iowa prohibition on ATM access fees to
be in conflict with the national bank
power to charge fees and therefore
preempted.26 For similar reasons, the
Fifth Circuit upheld a Federal district
court ruling that Federal law displaced
a Texas statute that prohibited the
charging of fees for cashing checks
drawn upon accounts at the payor
bank.27
Terms of real estate loans. The
OCC’s current regulations in subpart A
of part 34 address real estate lending
generally. Section 34.4(a) expressly
preempts state laws concerning five
areas of fixed-rate mortgage lending.
Section 34.4(a)(1) preempts state laws
concerning loan-to-value ratios. Section
34.4(a)(2) preempts state laws
concerning the schedule for repayment
of principal and interest. In this regard,
the key elements of any repayment
schedule are: (1) the timing of the
expected payments, and (2) the amount
of expected payments.43 Section
34.4(a)(3) preempts state laws
concerning the term to maturity of real
estate loans.44 Subpart B of part 34,
governing adjustable rate mortgages
(ARMs), states that national banks may
engage in ARM lending without regard
to any state law limitation.45
* Advertising. Courts have
consistently held that state laws limiting
the ability of a national bank to
advertise are preempted.46
* Permissible rates of interest. Federal
law establishes that national banks may
charge interest (both the rate and
amount 47) permitted by the state where
the bank is located without regard to the
laws of the state where the borrower is
located.48
* Permissible fees and non-interest
charges. Section 7.4002 of the OCC’s
rules outlines the framework for
national banks’ ability to impose noninterest
fees and charges; courts have
consistently held that state laws limiting
the ability of national banks to charge
such fees are preempted.49
* Management of credit accounts. The
OCC has taken the position that state
laws that interfere with a national
bank’s Federally-granted power to lend
and to engage in activities incidental to
its lending operations are preempted.
WOW!! Thanks for the piece rootless2! This wasn’t relaxation of real estate borrower protections, it constituted total abandonment of virtually all usury protection regulation. It is certainly easy to connect the dots from this Republican fiasco in 2003 to the start of the mortgage crisis (in 2005) which in turn led to the financial collapse (in 2007) that created the current national depression.
Obviously once the Bush administration pre-emptied all state rules controlling the limits on the debt market; lending practices of the Wall Street financial houses, big banks and their mortgage agent lackeys became the “Wild, Wild, West”, where anything goes and everyone qualifies for loans of any size. This document should be a critical part of every Democratic politician’s portfolio and the Democrats should be forcing the media to thoroughly analyze the details and the ramifications thereof, and how these changes directly caused the current economic collapse not only in America, but throughout the world.
I am certain the old incumbent high seniority Democratic Senators are well aware of this action by the Republicans back in 2003, but have chosen to keep it quiet and away from the public. These are the political hacks that are constantly selling John Q. Public down the drain, regardless of which party is in power. They are in office for their own personal interests and don’t give a damn for anyone else including the welfare of the nation. America will never reach her full potential for greatness until she rids herself of scoundrels like these who unfortunately author the laws of our nation.
Very interesting.