Colorado Attorney General Philip Weiser and Uniform Consumer Credit Code Administrator Martha Fulford have sued Activehours, Inc., doing business as EarnIn, alleging that EarnIn’s direct-to-consumer “Cash Out” earned-wage-access product is a consumer loan subject to Colorado’s lending laws.

The complaint, filed on August 27, 2026, in the Denver District Court for the City and County of Denver, alleges that EarnIn made more than 3.1 million transactions to Colorado consumers between January 2023 and July 2025, advancing approximately $300 million and collecting more than $16 million in tips and expedited-transfer fees.… Continue Reading

As we have chronicled in our blog, states are increasingly moving to fill the consumer-protection void created by the CFPB’s dramatic retreat from supervision, enforcement and rulemaking. State legislatures are considering and enacting new consumer-finance protections; state attorneys general are bringing more enforcement actions under state UDAP and other laws, often in bipartisan and multistate coalitions; and state financial regulators are expanding their supervisory and enforcement efforts.… Continue Reading

Hearing will focus on whether Section 525 permits an opt-out state to regulate loans made by out-of-state state banks

On Wednesday, September 2, the House Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing entitled “Strengthening the American Economy: Promoting Growth, Opportunity, and Prosperity.” The hearing will begin at 10:00 a.m. ET in Room 2128 of the Rayburn House Office Building.… Continue Reading

A New York trial court, in a decision issued on July 20, 2026, has handed the New York Attorney General a significant early victory in her lawsuit against Early Warning Services, LLC (“EWS”), the operator of the Zelle peer-to-peer payment network. In People of the State of New York v. Early Warning Services, LLC, Index No.… Continue Reading

The new California Business and Consumer Services Agency (BCSA), launched on July 1, 2026, will focus on improper practices that drive costs up for state residents, agency Secretary Rohit Chopra said, in a recent blog post.

“A key priority for the agency is to crack down on harmful and corrupt practices that wrongfully raise costs for families and honest businesses,” Chopra wrote.… Continue Reading

Yesterday, the State of Utah, joined by the attorneys general of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and West Virginia, filed an amicus brief in support of the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction in the pending challenge to Oregon House Bill 4116.… Continue Reading

The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, Division of Financial Regulation (DFR), has proposed to issue Bulletin No. DFR 2026-X, reminding nonbank “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) companies and BNPL service providers that they generally must obtain Oregon lending licenses before offering BNPL products to Oregon consumers. Unlike a few other states, Oregon has not enacted a statute that specifically applies to BNPL companies and service providers.… Continue Reading

On July 15, 2026, former Iowa Attorney General Thomas J. Miller filed an amicus brief supporting Colorado in the en banc proceedings before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in National Association of Industrial Bankers, et al. v. Weiser. Unlike the other amicus briefs filed in support of Colorado, Miller’s submission is unique because it is based not on academic research, economic analysis, or general principles of statutory interpretation, but on his personal experience administering Iowa’s consumer credit laws from the time the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (“DIDMCA”) was enacted in 1980 through more than four decades thereafter.… Continue Reading

Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has proposed regulations that would stop certain companies in the state from reporting medical debt to consumer credit agencies. 

The proposal would prohibit licensed medical care providers and debt collectors working for them from reporting medical debt to credit bureaus, intending to help patients avoid long-term financial harm after an unexpected illness or medical emergency. … Continue Reading

The New Jersey Attorney General and Division of Consumer Affairs recently issued a comprehensive Enforcement Statement signaling an aggressive enforcement posture toward so-called “junk fees” under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (CFA). The Enforcement Statement was issued in conjunction with Governor Mikie Sherrill’s Executive Order No. 19, which directs state agencies to review and recommend measures to eliminate or reduce junk fees across a broad range of industries.… Continue Reading