Press Releases
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Leading Good Government & Labor Groups Endorse Bank of Rochester Act
Albany, NY – Today, five leading good government and labor groups announced their support of the Bank of Rochester Act (S9326/A10134), which would authorize Rochester to establish a public bank to hold government deposits and reinvest in local economic development. AFSCME NY, CWA District 1, New Yorkers for Fiscal Fairness, NYPIRG, and Strong Economy for All argue the…
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Data Analysis: Glaring Loan Disparities Bolster Calls for Rochester Public Bank
Today, the NYS Community Equity Agenda coalition released a striking analysis and map of home mortgage data in Monroe County, revealing severe racial disparities and continued redlining. The findings highlight the urgent need for the Bank of Rochester Act, a bill currently under consideration in the state legislature. Sponsored by state Senator Samra Brouk and Assemblyman…
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Electeds, Groups Rally at City Hall for Enactment of the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act
On Thursday, more than 50 community, housing, and environmental justice groups and elected officials rallied at City Hall for enactment of the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA), which would give community land trusts (CLTs) and other nonprofits a first right to bid on multifamily buildings when a landlord sells. COPA – which was reintroduced at Thursday’s…
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Groups, Electeds Hold Press Conference at Capitol, Calling on Albany to Bring Public Banking to New York
On Wednesday, lawmakers joined community and labor groups at the Capitol to demand Albany bring public banking to New York this legislative session. The coalition declared its strong support for a new bill, the Bank of Rochester Act (S9326/A10134) and continued to call for passage of the broadly-supported New York Public Banking Act (S1754/A3352).
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Groups, Tenants, Electeds Rally at City Hall, Demand Council Boost Community Land Trusts To Keep New Yorkers Housed
On Thursday, more than 50 community, housing, and environmental justice groups and elected officials rallied at City Hall for the Community Land Act, a slate of local bills that would give community land trusts (CLTs) tools to remove land from the speculative market and expand community- and tenant-controlled permanently affordable housing in Black and brown neighborhoods.…
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Tenants, Community Groups, and Electeds Launch Campaign to Pass the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act With Rally in Brooklyn
As soaring housing costs continue to push New Yorkers out of their neighborhoods and the state, members of the Housing Justice for All and New York City Community Land Initiative coalitions rallied with elected officials, tenants and other advocates on Thursday to demand passage of the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) in this year’s…
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Public Bank NYC Coalition Renews Calls For Public Bank As City Council Member Keith Powers Reintroduces The People’s Bank Act
The People’s Bank Act, a package of bills that would lay the foundation for a public bank in New York City, was officially reintroduced today for the 2024-2025 New York City Council legislative session.
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Statement from the NYS Community Equity Agenda Coalition on CFPB’s Proposed Overdraft Rule
“We applaud the CFPB for issuing a strong proposed rule to crack down on big banks’ predatory overdraft fees, which have long exploited low-income New Yorkers and extracted massive sums from low-income neighborhoods and communities of color…”
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Advocates Win Far-Reaching Appellate Court Victory Challenging Abusive Debt Collection
Advocates won a unanimous decision in the Appellate Division, First Department, upending over a decade of bad case law that enabled unscrupulous debt collectors to extract massive amounts of wealth from low-income neighborhoods. The decision will rein in widespread debt collection schemes to fraudulently garnish wages and freeze bank accounts in violation of New Yorkers’ constitutional due process…
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New Research Finds Big Banks Holding City Deposits Guilty of Modern Day Redlining
…The coalition called for the creation of a public bank to divest public money from banks that harm communities, and reinvest in community wealth-building and high-quality financial services in neighborhoods of color….