(Washington Insider Magazine)-Junk fees, the economy, and the White House election prep process were all topics of discussion at the latest public speech President Joe Biden gave.
The president announced his initiative to lower the cost of living for the American people on Wednesday, October 26, 2022. The cost of living has increased due to inflation as well as other junk fees from banks, airlines, internet companies, entertainment, and more! Billions of dollars in added surprise costs are passed onto consumers every day. These added expenses usually come as a surprise to the consumer and deeply affect the wallet.
Here’s what the President had to say regarding the matter, posted October 26th to his personal Twitter account:
Unwanted fees, (known as junk fees) such as bank deposit fees for bounced checks and overdraft fees likely violate the Consumer Financial Protection Act. Many times, consumers are punished with bank fees for being on the receiving end of fraud or when an invalid check is deposited. These bank fees that are passed down to the consumer without warning are not only unethical but can be unlawful. Many times, a financial institution will charge an overdraft fee after showing the consumer their account has enough funds available to complete a debit transaction, but later drops in the balance after a pending charge is completed. The miscommunication is blamed on the backend of the bank as justification, leaving the consumer with a large junk fee to pay.
The junk fees target the American people and punish their wallets unnecessarily. Such practices from companies and financial institutions weaken the competitive market and raise costs for consumers, as well as other businesses. In January 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) launched the first junk-fee initiative that provided guidelines to clean up bank-end bank fees. However, this was not enough to protect the American people.
President Biden announced on Wednesday new actions within the Junk-Fee Initiative. The new action provides the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau with more specific guidelines to reduce additional junk fees within businesses nationwide. This new action holds hope in saving billions of dollars in costs to the consumer and ease the pain of the complicated rise in inflation.
