More than 1800 Colorado Small Business Owners and Consumers Speak Out Against Proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

As part of its significant grassroots mobilization effort, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced today that concerned small business owners and citizens across Colorado have sent more than 1800 letters to Colorado’s Congressional delegation urging them to oppose the Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA).

“Coloradans believe that protecting consumers is a critical part of financial regulatory reform, but creating more big government and more red tape with the CFPA is the wrong approach,” said Ryan McKee, senior director for the U.S. Chamber’s Center for Capital Market Competitiveness. “This new agency will impose new burdens on small businesses and consumers, and their ability to invest, create jobs, and grow Colorado’s economy.”

The letters, generated since Labor Day as a result of the U.S. Chamber’s Stop the CFPA campaign, reflect widespread opposition to the CFPA in Colorado. In just five months, individuals and small business owners from every state have sent more than 160,000 letters urging Congress to oppose the CFPA. In addition to its active grassroots effort, the Chamber has been running television, radio and online advertisements in key states to raise awareness about the harmful effects of the proposed legislation.

“In his State of the Union address, President Obama called job creation our number one priority,” said McKee. “The message that Colorado’s small business owners and consumers are sending the President and the Congress is that the CFPA won’t create jobs, but it will add unnecessary layers of bureaucratic red tape and will be a disincentive to hire. They want bipartisan solutions that will protect consumers without threatening Colorado’s economic growth.”

The Chamber believes the CFPA approach does not address the fundamental flaws in the existing regulatory structure, and has called for a bipartisan regulatory reform bill that includes strengthening the ability of the seven current federal regulators tasked with consumer protection to do the job right. Specifically, the Chamber recommends a strong national standard to simplify consumer disclosures, filling regulatory gaps where they exist, strengthening coordination among federal regulators and their enforcement against fraudulent and predatory practices.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.

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