The National Fair Housing Alliance, Rise Economy, BLDS LLC, and SolasAI filed a lawsuit challenging a new rule issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that dismantles decades-old protections against discrimination in lending and weakens enforcement of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA).
Enacted in 1974, ECOA was the first law to prohibit discriminatory lending on the basis of sex or marital status. It was later expanded to also protect against discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, age, because an applicant receives income from a public assistance program, or because an applicant has in good faith exercised any right under the Consumer Credit Protection Act.
However, a new rule issued by CFPB on April 22, 2026, included several policies that undermine these protections:
- Removes protections against discrimination and makes it more difficult to challenge banks and lenders for policies that unfairly target Black communities, women, immigrants, and other historically marginalized groups.
- Narrows what counts as illegally discouraging people from applying for credit.
- Restricts the use of the Special Purpose Credit Programs, which were designed to expand credit access to historically underserved communities. The new rule would effectively block many of those programs, especially those that consider race or gender.
The plaintiffs argue the rule ignores decades of law, evidence, and CFPB’s own research showing lending discrimination is still a critical problem. They’re asking the court to block the unlawful rule for lacking support and making discrimination easier.
Timeline
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Complaint was filed
