Tzedek DC and Coalition Members File Amicus Brief in Support of Acting CFPB Director Leandra English

Agency’s Independence Is Necessary to Its Mission, Groups Say

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) independence from external political influence is crucial to the agency’s mission of protecting consumers, Tzedek DC and nine other groups told a court today in an amicus brief filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Along with Tzedek DC, the groups are Public Citizen, Americans for Financial Reform, Center for Responsible Lending, Consumer Action, National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA), National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), National Consumers League, National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) and U.S. Public Interest Research Group Education Fund (U.S. PIRG Education Fund).

In the case, Deputy CFPB Director Leandra English is seeking a preliminary injunction allowing her to serve as acting director of the CFPB while litigation over the lawful acting director – herself or U.S. Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney – proceeds. In their amicus filing, the groups explain that the public has a strong interest in English serving as the acting director while the court further considers the legal issues.

“The CFPB’s independence is critical to its effectiveness in protecting our client community of low-income D.C. residents, who often face debt, credit and predatory lending crises, as well as unjust debt collection activities,” said Ariel Levinson-Waldman, president and director-counsel of Tzedek DC. “The Bureau, to say the least, should not be run by a member of the president’s Cabinet. The court should act to ensure compliance with Congress’s intent in Dodd-Frank of having an independent CFPB.”

The organizations’ amicus brief is here.

Tzedek DC supports bill introduced in DC Council to end automatic suspension of low-income drivers’ licenses for unpaid debts

Contact: Sarah Hollender, sh@tzedekdc.org

Washington, D.C., December 7, 2017 — D.C. Councilmember Elissa Silverman earlier this week introduced legislation that would end the automatic suspension of low-income residents’ driver’s licenses for the nonpayment of tickets and certain kinds of court debt. The Driver’s License Revocation Fairness Amendment Act of 2017 would end the city’s current practice of suspending driver’s licenses for failure to pay debts as low as $100 from parking tickets, traffic tickets, or certain court judgments.

Existing District law allows the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to suspend a person’s driver’s license for any unpaid government-issued ticket over $100, only reinstating the license once the bill, including any added fees, is paid. The legislation introduced this week aims to protect lower-income residents and working families who are not able to pay the ticket by setting income limits for license suspensions, reinstating licenses for eligible residents, and ending license suspensions as a tool for private debt collection.

Including Councilmember Silverman, six of the thirteen DC Councilmembers co-introduced or co-sponsored the bill. Co-introducers included At-Large Councilmember Anita Bonds, Ward 1 Councilmember Brianne Nadeau, Ward 7 Councilmember Vincent Gray, and Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White. At-Large Councilmember David Grosso was a co-sponsor. The bill was referred to the Council’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment.

Ariel Levinson-Waldman, President and Director-Counsel of Tzedek DC, said:

“Suspending DC residents’ driver’s licenses for nonpayment of debt is unfair, counter-productive, and legally problematic.  Tzedek DC thanks Councilmember Silverman and each of her Council colleagues working to advance the changes embodied in the bill.  We will continue to work with the Council and our coalition partners in advocating for these protections. 

It is time to end this irrational and harmful practice. Suspending low-income DC residents’ licenses makes them less able to afford their debt, and, importantly, increases their risk of exposure to criminal charges for driving without a license when they must drive a car for critical life tasks.  Not surprisingly, many low-income DC residents are arrested and charged for driving without a license, a criminal charge that carries a punishment of up to a year in prison and a $5,000 fine for the first offense.  Suspension doesn’t just perpetuate poverty.  It criminalizes it.” 

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For links to further background on the issue of drivers license suspension reform:

• The bill as introduced is here: Driver’s License Revocation Fairness Amendment Act of 2017. 
• The December 5, 2017 Washington Post on the bill and discussing Tzedek DC’s views on it.
• The November 2017 DC television interview by UDC David A. Clarke School of Law Dean Shelley Broderick on “Sound Advice” of Tzedek DC Advisory Council Member and WilmerHale Partner Danielle Conley, and Ariel Levinson-Waldman of Tzedek DC: Sound Advice: Tzedek DC.
• November 22 2017 Interview by Rebecca Vallas of the Center for American Progress Off-Kilter Radio Interview of Angela Ciolfi, Legal Aid Justice Center, and Ariel Levinson-Waldman, Tzedek DC: http://bit.ly/2BRHrpX [start at 27:15 of the recording].
• The October 27, 2017 testimony of Tzedek DC and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington to the Committee on Transportation and Environment urging the Council to adopt such a bill.

Tzedek DC Testifies to DC Council, Urging Legislation to End the Automatic Suspension of Low-Income DC Residents' Drivers Licenses for Nonpayment of Debt.

Tzedek DC hosted the inaugural Eat Well, Do Justice event on September 25, 2017

Tzedek DC held its first community event – and the Kugel was delicious!

September 25, 2017

On Monday, September 25 over 300 people packed the new UDC Student Center for Tzedek DC’s inaugural Eat Well, Do Justice! Celebrity Chef Kugel Cook-off. Through the generosity of the community, Tzedek DC raised over $110,000 to help fund their work advocating for DC residents facing debt-related crises.

The night was successful in raising critical funding oxygen, but also was great fun for all who attended. We ate some great kugel from some of DC’s top culinary talents—thanks to Washington Post Deputy Food Editor Bonnie Benwick’s leadership in putting the roster of chefs together:

Kyle Bailey of The Salt Line 

Mike Friedman of Red Hen and All Purpose

Danny Lee of Mandu and Chiko

Alex Levin of the Schlow Restaurant Group

[Pati Jinich of “Pati’s Mexican Table” who was scheduled to attend needed to be with family in Mexico City dealing with the effects of the earthquakes and had to miss this year’s event]

Alex Levin’s entry - Savta’s kugel, beat out spirited and tasty entries from the other three chefs winning the popular vote and the hearts and stomachs of the judges. Check out the article about the winning kugel on the Washington Post website.

We also thank a terrific set of guest judges:

The witty (and very tall!) David Gregory ,
food writer extraordinaire Joan Nathan
DC Bar leader AnnaMaria Steward, who dove in to her first kugel experience with her trademark gusto and humor
wonderful legal and kugel maven Marna Tucker

The judges are pictured below with the competing chefs.  A fuller set of event photos, courtesy of Jeffrey Baker Photography, can be found here.

Eat Well Do Justice! co-chairs Courtney Weiner, June Kress and Laura Kumin were instrumental in making the night a success from check in to check out. They did a masterful job turning Courtney’s inspired idea into a wonderful gathering for the community and a chance to share how special this first year of work has been for Tzedek DC. Their work was supported by a strong Host Committee and 58 event sponsors including members of the legal, civic, Jewish and corporate communities.  Thank you to all our attendees, sponsors, supporters and volunteers who made the evening memorable. 

Here are some links to stories about the night:

Bisnow DC

DC Bar: Kugels for a Good Cause

Jewish Food Experience Talks Kugels with Eat Well chefs

Jewish Food Experience Recap of the Event

UDC David A. Clarke School of Law: School News

DC Bar's write up of the event

Watch out for news in the coming months about the 2018 Eat Well, Do Justice!

Tzedek DC, the Virginia NAACP, and Coalition Partners File Brief in Opposition to Drivers’ Licenses Being Suspended for Unpaid Debts

Washington, D.C., August 16, 2017– Tzedek DC, the Virginia NAACP, and coalition partners today submitted an amicus brief in a case in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit arising out of the dismissal by the lower court of a class action complaint filed on behalf of over 900,000 Virginians whose drivers’ licenses were suspended.  Virginia, like the District of Columbia – where Tzedek DC’s legal and ongoing policy reform work on behalf of low-income DC residents with debt related issues is focused – currently suspends driver’s licenses when traffic tickets and court debt are unpaid, without any inquiry into the ability of the person with the driver’s license to pay traffic-related debts and the often accompanying late fees and penalties.

The brief details how, for many, the loss of a driver’s license means “a loss of a reliable way of meeting one’s basic needs such as transporting oneself or family members to work, to critical medical appointments, taking children to school and shopping for food.”  It argues that the automatic suspension of driver’s licenses in Virginia for non-payment of debt both has a disparate impact on  African-Americans and violates the Constitution’s due process and equal protection principles.

Tzedek DC in its first seven months of operations has, along with financial literacy work and legal work representing over 70 individuals being sued or threatened in debt cases, filed coalition amicus briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court, DC Circuit, and now the Fourth Circuit, related to debt and consumer  issues.  

Ariel Levinson-Waldman, President and Director-Counsel of Tzedek DC, commented: “As the brief notes, our client communities have a substantial interest in ensuring that the rules governing drivers’ licenses comply with constitutional requirements and basic principles of fairness. We believe that suspending drivers’ licenses in debt matters, especially with no inquiry into the individual’s ability to pay, is not only constitutionally dubious but also unfair and counter-productive public policy. In effect, it punishes the poor for being poor.”  

Contact: Sarah Hollender, sh@tzedekdc.org

Tzedek DC and coalition partners send letter to D.C. Council supporting legislation to protect residents against debt collection abuses

Washington, D.C., July 13, 2017 - Tzedek DC and coalition partners have sent a letter to the Council of the District of Columbia urging the Council to move forward with key legislation to protect residents from debt collection lawsuit abuses.  The letter notes that “debt collection tactics used against District residents are of particular concern given the civil rights and racial justice aspects of the issues surrounding debt collection lawsuits: as a 2016 report by Pro Publica concluded: ‘Black communities are hit much harder by debt collection lawsuits than white ones, even in places where black households and white households have similar incomes.’”   The full letter is here: Debt Buying Limitation Amendment Act of 2017 Support Letter