Better living through better policy.

Category: Life

The CFPB’s Open Banking Mandate Is About to Break Rent

Post author By Patrick M. Brenner
Post date December 15, 2025
1 Comment on The CFPB’s Open Banking Mandate Is About to Break Rent

The CFPB’s open banking mandate, the 1033 rule, poses a critical risk to America’s rent payments.

Colorado Conservatism Culture Domestic Policy Economic Opportunity Economy Government Regulation Illinois Life Markets and Finance New Mexico Political Thought Poverty & Welfare Poverty and Inequality Progressivism Public Opinion Top Issues Transparency Updates

Buried in Bias

Post author By Southwest Public Policy Institute
Post date December 12, 2025
1 Comment on Buried in Bias

The Center for Responsible Lending’s “Buried in Debt” report fails as policy analysis.

Tags Alternative Financial Services, Amortization Schedules, Annual Percentage Rate (APR), Banking Fees, Bolen Elliehausen Miller Study, Buried In Debt Report, Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), consumer choice, Consumer Credit Policy, Consumer Lending Research, Consumer Welfare, Cost Of Living Crisis, credit access, Credit Bureau Data, Credit Denial Rates, Credit Market Regulation, Credit Rationing, Credit Stacking, Credit Supply Constraints, Deep-Subprime Borrowers, Difference-In-Differences Analysis, Economic Opportunity, Evidence-Based Policymaking, Financial Hardship, financial inclusion, Financial Literacy, financial regulation, Financial Services Policy, Free Market Finance, Housing Cost Burden, Income Volatility, Interest Rate Caps, Loan Availability, Loan Disclosures, Market Distortion, Mortgage Finance, No Loan For You, No Loan For You!, Overdraft Fees, Payday Lending, Poverty And Inequality, Price Controls, Regulatory Economics, Regulatory Harm, Risk-Based Pricing, Selection Bias, Small-Dollar Credit Research, Small-Dollar Loans, Southwest Public Policy Institute (SPPI), Subprime Borrowers, Substitute Financial Products, Survivorship Bias, Too!, Total Cost Of Credit, Usury Laws

Culture Domestic Policy Economic Opportunity Economy Education Freedom and Reform Government Regulation Life Markets and Finance Political Thought Poverty & Welfare Poverty and Inequality Progressivism Public Opinion Top Issues Transparency Updates

The Need to Modernize Financial Literacy in Uncertain Economic Times

Post author By Lucas J. Parker
Post date December 6, 2025
1 Comment on The Need to Modernize Financial Literacy in Uncertain Economic Times

A modernized financial-literacy framework must equip students with practical, real-world tools to navigate an increasingly complex and often predatory consumer-finance landscape.

Tags Amortization Schedules, Annual Percentage Rate (APR), Consumer Finance, Consumer Protection, Credit Market Instruction, Credit Policy Impacts, Credit Scoring Education, Credit-Market Case Studies, Debt Management Education, Decision-Making Skills, Economic Mobility, Financial Curriculum Redesign, Financial Education Reform, Financial Independence For Students, Financial Literacy, Financial Technology (Fintech) Education, High School Curriculum Modernization, High-Cost Credit Products, Household Debt Burden, Industry Practitioner Insights, Lending Transparency, Loan Scenarios, Long-Term Mortgage Misalignment, Mortgage Interest Accrual, Opportunity Cost Understanding, Payday Loan Risks, Predatory Lending Awareness, Real-World Financial Skills, Regulatory Environment, Risk Assessment Training, Southwest Public Policy Institute (SPPI), Student Financial Outcomes, Youth Financial Preparedness

Budget and Spending Conservatism Courts Culture Cybersecurity Domestic Policy Economic Opportunity Economy Government Regulation Government Spending Housing Infrastructure & Technology Legal and Judicial Life Markets and Finance Political Thought Progressivism Public Opinion Reports Technology Top Issues Updates

Report: 1033 Error, Rule Not Sound

Post author By Southwest Public Policy Institute
Post date November 24, 2025
2 Comments on Report: 1033 Error, Rule Not Sound

The CFPB’s open-banking mandate endangers consumers.

Tags Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), Authorized Third Parties, Banks And Credit Unions, Chevron Deference, Comparison Shopping Tools, Consumer Data Access, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Consumer Protection Policy, Credit Karma, Cybersecurity Risks, Data Breach Risks, Data Governance, Data Monetization, Data Portability, Data Privacy Frameworks, Data Security, Data Sharing Agreements, Digital Financial Platforms, Dodd-Frank Act, Economic Freedom, Federal Court Injunction, Financial Compliance, Financial Data Aggregators, Financial Data Ecosystem, Financial Data Exchange (FDX), Financial Fraud Prevention, Financial Innovation, Financial Institutions, Financial Market Stability, Financial Privacy, Financial Regulation Reform, Financial Services Policy, financial technology, Financial Transparency, Fintech Regulation, Free Market Policy, Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), Lead Generators, Lending Tree, Liability Asymmetry, Loper Bright Decision, Major Questions Doctrine, Market-Based Innovation, Meta Fraud Report, National Security Risks, NerdWallet, Open Banking, Personal Financial Data Rights Rule, Plaid Data Connections, Price Controls, Regulatory Compliance, Regulatory Overreach, Rohit Chopra, Screen Scraping, Section 1033, Statutory Authority Limits, Third-Party Data Access, Trump Administration Rulemaking, Voluntary Industry Standards

Agriculture Alaska Arizona California Coal, Oil, Natural Gas Colorado Conservatism Culture Domestic Policy Energy & Environment Energy Economics Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources Life New Mexico Oklahoma Political Thought Progressivism Public Opinion Renewable Energy Texas Top Issues Updates Utah

The Washington Post: New Mexico knows Trump’s BLM nominee. Back away.

Post author By Patrick M. Brenner
Post date November 22, 2025
No Comments on The Washington Post: New Mexico knows Trump’s BLM nominee. Back away.

Former New Mexico Republican chairman Steve Pearce is the opposite of what the complex agency needs.

Tags Administrative Leadership, American West, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Climate Policy, Conservation Policy, Donald Trump, Economic Development, Energy Policy, Environmental Policy, Environmental Protection, Executive Branch Appointments, Federal Agency Leadership, Federal Appointments, Federal Land Oversight, Federal Land Use, GOP Infighting, Government Competence, Government Reform, Grazing Permits, Land Management Policy, Mineral Rights, Natural Resources Management, New Mexico Legislature, New Mexico Politics, Oil And Gas Industry, Opinion Editorial, Otero Mesa, Partisan Politics, Patrick M. Brenner, Political Accountability, Political Analysis, Political Appointments, Political Polarization, Public Land Stewardship, Public Lands, Public Policy, Public Trust, Republican Leadership, Republican Party, Rural Policy, Southwest Public Policy Institute (SPPI), State Politics, Stevan Pearce, Susana Martinez, Tribal Nations, Trump Administration, Trump Second Term, Washington Post Opinion, Western Communities, Western Conservation, Western States Politics

Conservatism Culture Debt Domestic Policy Economic Opportunity Economy Government Regulation Housing Infrastructure & Technology Life Markets and Finance Political Thought Poverty & Welfare Poverty and Inequality Public Opinion Reports Top Issues Transparency Updates

Report: The Case Against 50-Year Mortgages

Post author By Southwest Public Policy Institute
Post date November 8, 2025
2 Comments on Report: The Case Against 50-Year Mortgages

How will Washington’s housing “fix” entrench debt, inflate prices, and undermine the American Dream?

Tags 50-Year Mortgage, Abrazos Homes, Affordable Housing, Annual Percentage Rate (APR), Bill Pulte, Building Permits, Central Planning, Construction Costs, Consumer Price Index (CPI), Donald Trump, Economic Policy, Fannie Mae, Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Federal Reserve, financial regulation, Freddie Mac, Government Subsidies, Home Builders, Homeownership, Housing Affordability, Housing Policy, Housing Supply, Immigration Policy, Inflation, Jerome Powell, Mackenzie Bishop, Mortgage Market, Mortgage Rates, Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS), Patrick M. Brenner, Property Taxes, Real Estate Market, Red Tape, Skilled Trades, Southwest Public Policy Institute (SPPI), Sticky Inflation, Tariffs, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Truth in Lending Act (TILA), Zoning Reform

Conservatism Culture Domestic Policy Economic Opportunity Economy Government Regulation Housing Life Markets and Finance Political Thought Poverty & Welfare Poverty and Inequality Public Opinion Top Issues Transparency Updates

The Wall Street Journal: The Case Against 30-Year Mortgages

Post author By Patrick M. Brenner
Post date November 8, 2025
1 Comment on The Wall Street Journal: The Case Against 30-Year Mortgages

Subsidized debt drives up prices, sucks up wealth, and makes it hard for millennials to buy homes.

Tags 30-Year Mortgage, 50-Year Mortgage, American Dream, Amortization, Annual Percentage Rate (APR), Central Planning, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Economic Policy, Fannie Mae, Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Federal Reserve, financial regulation, Freddie Mac, GI Bill, Government Subsidies, Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC), Homeownership, Housing Affordability, Housing Finance, Housing Policy, Housing Prices, Inflation, Lending Reform, Millennials, Mortgage Interest, Mortgage Rates, Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS), Patrick M. Brenner, Real Estate Market, Southwest Public Policy Institute (SPPI), The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Truth in Lending Act (TILA)

Budget and Spending Conservatism Culture Domestic Policy Government Regulation Government Spending Health Care Life Medicare Political Thought Poverty & Welfare Poverty and Inequality Public Opinion Top Issues Updates Welfare

Rural Medicare Advantage Customers See Decreased Options

Post author By Lucas J. Parker
Post date November 7, 2025
No Comments on Rural Medicare Advantage Customers See Decreased Options

As the December 7 Medicare Open Enrollment deadline approaches, rural seniors face shrinking coverage options as major insurers scale back Medicare Advantage plans nationwide.

Budget and Spending Conservatism Courts Crime and Justice Culture Cybersecurity Domestic Policy Economic Opportunity Economy Government Regulation Government Spending Infrastructure & Technology Legal and Judicial Life Markets and Finance Political Thought Poverty & Welfare Poverty and Inequality Progressivism Public Opinion Technology The Constitution Top Issues Updates

Vought Charts New Path for the CFPB

Post author By Lucas J. Parker
Post date October 4, 2025
2 Comments on Vought Charts New Path for the CFPB

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau headquarters in Washington, D.C. — once the central regulator of financial services, now overshadowed by a growing patchwork of state attorneys general enforcement.

Russell Vought signals a shift toward proportional, efficient regulation after years of CFPB overreach under Rohit Chopra.