According to the Guardian, the Trump administration plans to abolish key parts of an Obama-era rule that was aimed at protecting vulnerable borrowers from amassing untenable debts from payday loans. Questions: 1. How high can the interest rate be from some payday lenders? 2. What is the Trump administration argument for scrapping the basic expense… Read more »
Posts Tagged: corporate lobbying
A Change in the Collection of Sales Tax
According to Slate, the Supreme Court dragged a bit of American tax law into the 21st century when they ruled that states could force all online retailers to collect sales taxes, even if they lack a physical presence there. Questions: 1. Do you think the ruling will change buying habits? Explain. 2. What case was… Read more »
Bye, Bye to Tens of Thousands of Dollars of Debt for a Certificate
Despite intensive lobbying efforts and lawsuits by the Association of Proprietary Colleges (APC), a U.S. District federal judge denied a challenge to the Obama administration’s rules limiting the amount of debt students can carry in career-training programs. This decision delivers a blow to the deteriorating for-profit college industry. Questions: 1. What are the new rules… Read more »
That’s the Walmart Way!
An Oklahoma City Walmart is asking employees to donate food to help their coworkers make ends meet during the holiday season. The company drew criticism for similar employee food drives a year ago. Besides incurring a total public assistance cost of $6.2 billion per year, Walmart has been criticized for running a corporate charity called… Read more »
Access to Material Confidential Government Information?
According to The Washington Post, the Securities and Exchange Commission has issued subpoenas to Height Securities, a Washington-based stock brokerage firm, and individuals in connection with the leak last month about a federal funding decision that appeared to cause a surge in stock trading of several major health companies. Questions: 1. What healthcare stock surged… Read more »
Shareholders – 1; Corporations – 0; SEC – Tie Breaker
This year’s proxy season is showing signs of greater activism by shareholders. The proxy advisory service Institutional Shareholder Services is projecting that there could be as many as 17 contests for the election of directors, which is slightly up from last year. The difference is that the contests are much bigger and include six at… Read more »