FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 2, 2019
CONTACT: Milena Paez, 916-470-8921
SACRAMENTO, CA — Today, NextGen California and its key partners: the Student Borrower Protection Center, Student Debt Crisis, Consumer Reports, and Young Invincibles will unite to launch the Free My Future: Student Loan Debt Week of Action by hosting a national Tele-Town Hall. The Tele-Town Hall will focus on the growing student loan debt crisis — outline the problem, discuss programs and resources that can provide assistance, and answer specific audience questions. Speakers will also emphasize the critical importance of passing the Student Borrower Bill of Rights (AB 376 – Stone) in the California State Legislature ( — a first-of-its kind law which would regulate the student loan servicing industry and establish stronger consumer protections for student loan borrowers.
Tele-Town Hall – Monday December 2, 5 p.m. PST
This event is open to both the public and press with RSVP as space is limited.
Moderator:
Speakers:
Participants can join and follow slide presentation via online webinar or listen via telephone.
Registration Link*: http://bit.ly/2OItmSY
* Webinar and dial-in instructions will be emailed to participants once registered.
AB 376 (Stone)
AB 376, the Student Borrower Bill of Rights, will establish new rights for all California student loan borrowers and create special protections for military families, nurses, the disabled population, teachers, and other public service workers. The legislation would require student loan companies to train their staff on these new rights as well as create strong consumer protections to prevent companies from deceiving teachers and misleading military borrowers. This bill also creates new penalties for companies that deploy predatory practices regarding repayment options and, for the first time, give individual borrowers new legal remedies to seek redress for the financial harm such abusive cause.
Free My Future Week of Action Events:
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NextGen California is a non-profit organization dedicated to working on legislative, budgetary, regulatory, and programmatic issues. Originally founded in 2014 to focus on climate and environmental policy, in recent years, NextGen California has broadened its scope to advance solutions to various economic, and social justice issues. Specifically, our policy portfolio now encompasses topics such as: criminal justice and immigration; healthcare and food insecurity; mental health and voting rights; student loan debt and the Census; veterans issues and consumer protections; and affordable housing and environmental justice.
The Student Borrower Protection Center is a nonprofit organization focused on alleviating the burden of student debt for millions of Americans. SBPC engages in advocacy, policymaking, and litigation strategy to rein in industry abuses, protect borrowers’ rights, and advance economic opportunity for the next generation of students. Led by the team of former federal regulators that directed oversight of the student loan market at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, SBPC exposes harmful and illegal practices in the student loan industry, drives impact litigation, advocates on behalf of student loan borrowers in Washington and in state capitals, and promotes progressive policy change. SBPC accomplishes these goals by partnering with leaders at all levels of government and throughout the nonprofit sector.
Student Debt Crisis is a non-profit (501c4) organization dedicated to fundamentally reforming student debt and higher education loan policies. Student Debt Crisis (SDC) takes a personal approach to member needs—working directly with borrowers to understand their challenges and fears, repayment obstacles and frustrations. SDC tackles the challenges of loan refinancing and consumer protection policies with media and legislators, as well as educating borrowers and higher education experts with lectures, webinars and special events.
Consumer Reports is an expert, independent, non-profit organization whose mission is to work for a fair, just, and safe marketplace for all consumers and to empower consumers to protect themselves. Consumer Reports works for pro-consumer policies in the areas of financial services, as well as telecommunications, health care, food and product safety, energy, telecommunications, privacy and data security, and competition and consumer choice, among other issues, in Washington, DC, in the states, and in the marketplace. Consumer Reports is the world’s largest independent product-testing organization, using its dozens of labs, auto test center, and survey research department to rate thousands of products and services annually. Founded in 1936, Consumer Reports has over 6 million subscribers to its magazine, website, and other publications.
Young Invincibles (YI) is a national nonprofit, non-partisan advocacy and research organization working with and for young adults to address the generation’s most pressing economic challenges by amplifying the voices of young adults in the political process. With a focus on higher education, health care, workforce development, and civic engagement, our work is guided by the belief that every young person – regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status, or any other factor – deserves a fair chance to achieve their goals and reach financial stability.