{"id":4896,"date":"2016-10-05T21:19:50","date_gmt":"2016-10-06T01:19:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/?p=4896"},"modified":"2019-10-09T15:29:35","modified_gmt":"2019-10-09T19:29:35","slug":"cfpb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/2016\/10\/05\/cfpb\/","title":{"rendered":"A partial victory: release cards included in CFPB’s new regulations"},"content":{"rendered":"

\nToday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a final rule<\/a> on prepaid debit cards. Last year, the Prison Policy Initiative and other groups urged the CFBP<\/a> to use this rulemaking to address abusive practices related to prepaid debit cards issued to people upon their release from prison or jail. The CFPB’s decision today is a partial win, but more work remains to be done.\n<\/p>\n

\nThe good news is that release cards will be covered by the new consumer protections contained in the final rule. Specifically, correctional facilities will have to provide clear fee disclosures, card issuers will have to provide reliable access to account histories, and cardholders will have some ability to dispute inaccurate charges.\n<\/p>\n

\nPrison Policy Initiative had argued that correctional facilities should be prohibited from requiring that people receive their money on prepaid cards. The CFBP declined to impose such a prohibition at this time. Instead, the Bureau acknowledged the concerns about release cards, but said more research would need to be done before it could consider taking action.\n<\/p>\n

\nFinally, the CFPB ruling clarified that at least some release cards should be conforming to existing (and new) regulations:\n<\/p>\n

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[T]o the extent that… prison release cards are used to disburse consumers\u2019 salaries or government benefits…, such accounts are already covered … and will continue to be so under this final rule.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\nAs the CFPB proceeds with the “additional public participation and information gathering about the specific product types at issue”, correctional facilities are increasingly using these expensive cards to repay people they release — money in someone’s possession when initially arrested, money earned working in the facility, or money sent by friends and relatives.\n<\/p>\n

\nBefore the rise of jail release cards, people were given cash or a check. Now, they are instead given a mandatory prepaid Mastercard, which comes with high fees that eat into their balance. These cards charge for basic things like:\n<\/p>\n