Public Policy & NGOs
Here's a look at documents from public policy and non-governmental organizations
Featured Stories
Protect Our Care: Report - Year One of RFK Jr., Public Health Enemy #1
WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 (TNSrpt) -- Protect Our Care issued the following news:
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REPORT: Year One of RFK Jr., Public Health Enemy #1
As this week marks the one-year anniversary that the U.S. Senate narrowly confirmed anti-vax profiteer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Trump's HHS Secretary, Protect Our Care released a new report today -- "Year One of RFK Jr., Public Health Enemy #1" - spotlighting RFK Jr.'s worst policy failures to date that have endangered our public health in pursuit of a conspiracy-driven, anti-vax, anti-science agenda.
First reported by Politico Playbook, the report details how
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 (TNSrpt) -- Protect Our Care issued the following news:
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REPORT: Year One of RFK Jr., Public Health Enemy #1
As this week marks the one-year anniversary that the U.S. Senate narrowly confirmed anti-vax profiteer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Trump's HHS Secretary, Protect Our Care released a new report today -- "Year One of RFK Jr., Public Health Enemy #1" - spotlighting RFK Jr.'s worst policy failures to date that have endangered our public health in pursuit of a conspiracy-driven, anti-vax, anti-science agenda.
First reported by Politico Playbook, the report details howKennedy has abused his power to dismantle public health infrastructure. Across HHS, the CDC, and the FDA, he and Trump have purged experts, stacked key posts and advisory bodies with anti-vax quacks, slashed critical research, cancelled life-saving clinical trials, and sabotaged basic tools like vaccines.gov, creating chaos inside agencies and confusion for families, clinicians, and states.
Brad Woodhouse, President, Protect Our Care: "In one year, RFK Jr. has made America sicker, let measles get a foothold in the U.S. again, undermined public trust in vaccines, promoted dangerous conspiracy theories, installed quacks in key positions and wreaked havoc on our nation's public health infrastructure. The idea that this charlatan would make America healthy again is B.S. and it always was. During the battle over his confirmation we warned about what he would do and predicted accurately everything he's done - and the Senators who buried their heads in the sand and accepted his lies at face value who are now expressing concern over his actions should bow their heads in shame".
KEY FINDINGS:
* Inside HHS, the strategy is chaos by design. Tens of thousands of staff targeted for layoffs, "fired then rehired" whiplash, a hollowed out NIH struggling to fill half its institute directorships, and a CDC that employees now describe as a "living hell" where scientists are surveilled, muzzled, and pushed out just as measles, whooping cough, and other preventable diseases are roaring back. At the FDA, grifters and anti vaxxers are now in top positions, chilling internal dissent and green lighting junk science about supposed vaccine harms. Meanwhile, Kennedy and Trump have torn down U.S. global health capacity, pulled out of WHO, and left state and local health departments scrambling after whiplash cuts and partial restorations of core grants. In the name of Make America Healthy Again (MAHA), they have canceled and censored research across NIH and NSF, shut down clinical trials mid stream, and targeted "DEI," women's health, LGBTQ+ care, fluoride, Tylenol, and even 5G wireless signals, systematically dismantling the science and programs that keep people healthy and alive.
* The centerpiece of RFK Jr.'s tenure is a full scale war on vaccines. Kennedy has fired and restacked key advisory committees with anti vaccine activists, slashed the childhood vaccine schedule, deleted the CDC's clear statement that vaccines do not cause autism, sabotaged access to resources, and turned COVID-19 and flu guidance into a confusing, high risk "choose your own adventure" while preventable infections surge and our country's measles elimination teeters on the brink. Kennedy's first year in office saw the first measles deaths in this country in a decade and record levels of flu activity, while HHS sat on its hands and RFK Jr. traveled the country promoting bogus measles treatments rather than vaccination. At the same time, MAHA aligned groups are driving statehouse bills to gut school mandates, pushing unproven and possibly dangerous treatments, and exploiting Kennedy's federal vaccine schedule changes to weaken state requirements, leaving pediatricians, families, public health officials, and mainstream medical groups scrambling to build workarounds to protect public health.
* RFK Jr.'s record is toxic. Polling shows cratering confidence in federal health leadership, Kennedy as one of the least popular figures in the cabinet, and large majorities continuing to side with routine childhood vaccination and vaccine research. RFK Jr.'s tenure is a vivid warning label on what happens when you hand over America's public health infrastructure to an anti vaccine ideologue with no science or medical background: chaos, cuts, conspiracy theories, and more sickness and preventable deaths for American families.
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REPORT: https://www.protectourcare.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/REPORT-RFK-Jr-Public-Health-Enemy-Number-One.pdf
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Original text here: https://www.protectourcare.org/report-year-one-of-rfk-jr-public-health-enemy-1/
[Category: Health Care]
New York Public Library Opens "Pandemic Diaries," a Collection of Oral Histories Documenting Life Under Lockdown
NEW YORK, Feb. 10 -- The New York Public Library issued the following news release on Feb. 9, 2026:
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The New York Public Library Opens "Pandemic Diaries," a Collection of Oral Histories Documenting Life Under Lockdown
Collected in real time by The Library, the audio collection captures the unprecedented lived experiences of New Yorkers and others during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The New York Public Library announced today that the Pandemic Diaries collection, an audio archive chronicling the COVID-19 pandemic crowdsourced by the Library, is now publicly available. Collected between August
... Show Full Article
NEW YORK, Feb. 10 -- The New York Public Library issued the following news release on Feb. 9, 2026:
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The New York Public Library Opens "Pandemic Diaries," a Collection of Oral Histories Documenting Life Under Lockdown
Collected in real time by The Library, the audio collection captures the unprecedented lived experiences of New Yorkers and others during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The New York Public Library announced today that the Pandemic Diaries collection, an audio archive chronicling the COVID-19 pandemic crowdsourced by the Library, is now publicly available. Collected between August2020 and July 2021, the collection consists of nearly 270 recorded stories, making it the largest COVID audio collecting project undertaken in New York City during that period.
"The Pandemic Diaries collection provides a direct window into the lives of New Yorkers at the height of the COVID-19 lockdown, offering insights into our city's resilience while also capturing the profound loneliness and loss caused by the disease," said Brent Reidy, Andrew W. Mellon Director of the Research Libraries. "By preserving these raw, personal accounts, we ensure that the lessons of this devastating time are never lost, but instead serve as a cornerstone for our collective understanding of history."
"To live through the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic was to experience history in real time," said Julie Golia, the Linda May Uris Director of the Humanities and Social Sciences Research Library. "As one of the world's preeminent institutions committed to preserving the history of New York and beyond, the Library recognized how important it was to document this extraordinary time in history through the voices of those who experienced it."
Contributors recall with poignant immediacy the unprecedented challenges of the first pandemic year: stay-at-home-orders, online learning, parenting under lockdown, remote work, death and grieving in isolation, nationwide protests for racial justice, and the many ways that New Yorkers found hope and resilience in community. Amid the diaristic entries, which average thirty minutes in length, are spoken word poems, essays, interviews, and mentions of national and local politics and news. The resulting archive of first-person testimonies helps ground this sweeping historic period in everyday human moments.
In addition to collecting crowdsourced audio submissions, the Pandemic Diaries project also worked with individuals, educators, and organizations such as The Strangers, a community of Muslim poets; the CUNY Mexican Studies Institute; and other educators who integrated the project into their online teaching.
The collection is open to anyone with a NYPL library card. It can be accessed in-person at the Library's flagship Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.
The collection joins other significant oral histories at The New York Public Library including the Rikers Public Memory Project, the MTA 1982 and 1987 Capital Programs oral histories, and the Henry Street Settlement Hope & Resilience on the COVID Frontlines oral histories.
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Original text here: https://www.nypl.org/press/new-york-public-library-opens-pandemic-diaries-collection-oral-histories-documenting-life
[Category: Libraries]
Location Announced for the Norfolk Virginia Temple
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Feb. 10 -- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints issued the following news release:
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Location Announced for the Norfolk Virginia Temple
There are four temples announced, under construction or operating in Virginia
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The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced the location of the Norfolk Virginia Temple. An exterior rendering has also been provided.
This house of the Lord will be built on a 23-acre site off Harbour View Boulevard and Bridge Road in Suffolk, Virginia. Plans call for an 18,850-square-foot, one-story
... Show Full Article
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Feb. 10 -- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints issued the following news release:
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Location Announced for the Norfolk Virginia Temple
There are four temples announced, under construction or operating in Virginia
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The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced the location of the Norfolk Virginia Temple. An exterior rendering has also been provided.
This house of the Lord will be built on a 23-acre site off Harbour View Boulevard and Bridge Road in Suffolk, Virginia. Plans call for an 18,850-square-foot, one-storybuilding and an adjacent Distribution Center.
Virginia is home to over 100,000 Latter-day Saints, meeting in around 210 congregations.
The Richmond Virginia Temple was dedicated in 2023, and construction began for the Winchester Virginia Temple in 2025. In addition to the Norfolk Virgina Temple, the Roanoke Virginia Temple has been announced, bringing the number of temples in the state to four.
"Increased time in the temple will help us prepare for the Second Coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ," President Russell M. Nelson said following the Norfolk Virginia Temple announcement in April 2025.
Temples differ from the Church's meetinghouses (chapels). All are welcome to attend Sunday worship services and other weekday activities at local meetinghouses. The primary purpose of temples is for faithful members of the Church of Jesus Christ to participate in sacred ceremonies that unite families forever.
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Original text here: https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/location-announced-for-the-norfolk-virginia-temple
[Category: Religion]
International Justice Mission: From Bonded Labor to the Ballot Box - Nine Survivors Win Local Elections
WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 -- International Justice Mission issued the following news:
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From Bonded Labor to the Ballot Box: Nine Survivors Win Local Elections
Summary: Nine survivors of bonded labor won local government elections in their villages in South Asia in December, marking a historic shift as communities prioritize survivor voices.
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Lingamma beamed as she rose above the crowd, hoisted onto the shoulders of her female supporters and friends.
In that moment, they were not merely celebrating her victory in a local election. They were lifting one of their own from the margins into public
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 -- International Justice Mission issued the following news:
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From Bonded Labor to the Ballot Box: Nine Survivors Win Local Elections
Summary: Nine survivors of bonded labor won local government elections in their villages in South Asia in December, marking a historic shift as communities prioritize survivor voices.
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Lingamma beamed as she rose above the crowd, hoisted onto the shoulders of her female supporters and friends.
In that moment, they were not merely celebrating her victory in a local election. They were lifting one of their own from the margins into publicleadership.
Lingamma was just one of nine survivors of bonded labor who won local government elections in one state in with IJM works in December 2025. Three men and five women will serve as ward members in their villages (each representing several dozen households), and Lingamma will serve as her village's Sarpanch (similar to a mayor).
Reflecting on these victories, one IJM leader shared, "Ten years ago, these individuals were trapped in bondage and never imagined they could one day lead communities. Today, in 2026, we are witnessing a remarkable transformation... In villages where their former oppressors still live, these leaders have risen far beyond--proving that hope and determination can rewrite destinies."
Just a decade ago, this outcome for Lingamma would have been unthinkable.
Until 2016, she was among 45 families from a marginalized tribal community in Amaragiri Village who were trapped in a brutal system of bonded labor. Three powerful businessmen had taken hold of the local fishing trade and forced local fishers to sell everything to them. They controlled families like Lingamma's through predatory debts, coercion, and violence. For more than 30 years, these families lived in fear and deep poverty, without anyone to stand up for them.
Everything changed in January 2016, when IJM and our partner Foundation for Sustainable Development (FSD) supported authorities in rescuing the families from decades of abuse.
In the years that followed, the survivors came together to rebuild their lives with dignity and purpose. They formed the Amaragiri Released Bonded Laborers Association (RBLA), engaged government benefit programs to improve their lives, and even established their own fish processing facility to secure economic independence. Livelihoods stabilized, children returned to school, and the whole village began a determined journey from survival to self-governance.
During this time Lingamma emerged as a steady and trusted leader. She led RBLA meetings, followed up consistently with government agencies for benefits, supported families in their rehabilitation, and worked closely with the community on economic empowerment projects.
After her election win, she shared, "This opportunity is not just my victory--it is our community's victory. As Sarpanch, I want to improve our village by ensuring proper roads, clean drinking water, better health services, and good education for our children. I am committed to working for the well-being and progress of every family in our village."
Her recent election victory builds on a growing legacy of survivor leadership in Amaragiri.
In previous elections, survivor leader Mallaiah was elected as the vice-Sarpanch. During his tenure, he secured a government bus service for the village, facilitated housing for survivor families, and successfully advocated for a cold storage facility for fish--strengthening livelihoods across the community.
One IJM staff member explained, "Mallaiah's leadership laid the foundation. This election has carried it forward. Today, Amaragiri is no longer a village defined by bondage. It is a village led by survivors."
Lingamma adds, "I never dreamed of having a life of freedom like this. I am grateful and would like to use every opportunity to help and develop my community and my village."
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Original text here: https://www.ijm.org/news/from-bonded-labor-to-the-ballot-box-nine-survivors-win-local-elections
[Category: Sociological]
Institute for Energy Economics & Financial Analysis: Actions to Unlock Adaptation Financing Can Shield Southeast Asia From Climate Shocks
LAKEWOOD, Ohio, Feb. 10 (TNSbrep) -- The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis issued the following news release:
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Actions to unlock adaptation financing can shield Southeast Asia from climate shocks
Strengthening national plans and taxonomies, enhancing project preparation and implementation, leveraging financial instruments, and incorporating forward-looking benefits can help address chronic underinvestment in adaptation
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(IEEFA Asia): Asia remains disproportionately vulnerable to climate shocks, but adaptation finance remains a challenging and underfunded area. A new
... Show Full Article
LAKEWOOD, Ohio, Feb. 10 (TNSbrep) -- The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis issued the following news release:
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Actions to unlock adaptation financing can shield Southeast Asia from climate shocks
Strengthening national plans and taxonomies, enhancing project preparation and implementation, leveraging financial instruments, and incorporating forward-looking benefits can help address chronic underinvestment in adaptation
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(IEEFA Asia): Asia remains disproportionately vulnerable to climate shocks, but adaptation finance remains a challenging and underfunded area. A newreport by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) highlights challenges in adaptation projects, identifies key barriers in Southeast Asia, and recommends opportunities to address the gap.
Direct economic losses from climate-related events in Asia averaged USD75.7 billion annually between 2000 and 2023, accounting for about 40% of global losses over the same period. However, in 2023, global adaptation finance amounted to just USD65 billion (4% of total climate finance flows of USD1.9 trillion) and was even lower in Asia. Between 2018 and 2019, Southeast Asia received USD27.8 billion in total climate finance, with adaptation accounting for only 12%.
"Closing the adaptation financing gap requires treating it as a core national development and economic priority, integrated into long-term planning, budgeting, and policy frameworks. Investors should move beyond seeing it solely as a cost and incorporate forward-looking resilience risks and benefits into financial appraisal, investment strategies, and project evaluations," says report co-author Ramnath N. Iyer, IEEFA's Sustainable Finance Lead, Asia.
"Apart from robust, detailed national adaptation plans and dedicated budgets, strong institutional capacity is also needed that understands adaptation policies and accelerates the identification and implementation of credible projects," says co-author Shu Xuan Tan, IEEFA's Sustainable Finance Analyst, Asia.
"Currently, adaptation risks and adaptation preparedness vary widely across Asia. Adaptation projects struggle with a low disbursement ratio of 66%, compared with 98% for overall development finance, and project approvals are often low due to insufficient data, unclear baselines, or poorly articulated change theories."
Think globally, act locally
According to the report, adaptation projects typically rely on grants and concessional financing, which fall far short of needs. Efforts should focus on mobilizing private investors to unlock greater financing flows.
Developed nations have pledged to increase adaptation finance for developing countries to USD40 billion by 2025 and to triple it to USD120 billion by 2035. However, given shifting global priorities and the decline in international development aid, domestic sources will need to play a bigger role.
Between 2018 and 2023, international and regional investors accounted for 66% and 28% of blended climate finance commitments in Southeast Asia, respectively, while domestic sources contributed just 6%.
There is a dominant perception that adaptation benefits are "hard to measure", despite growing evidence that adaptation investments deliver substantial economic and social returns by avoiding losses, enhancing economic activity, and generating broader environmental and social advantages. This lack of understanding highlights the urgent need to accelerate the development of practical, interoperable adaptation criteria and outcome indicators.
"Sustainable finance taxonomies that account for and credit measures related to adaptation can play a crucial role," says Tan.
Adaptation is recognized as an environmental objective in most Asian taxonomies, except in China and Vietnam. However, the classification criteria for adaptation are either not fully defined or are presented mainly through qualitative descriptions, lacking the detailed technical screening criteria and thresholds typically applied to mitigation activities.
"The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) taxonomy is currently being updated to reflect these gaps and, if designed comprehensively, it can reduce fragmentation, clarify and ease the flow of finance into adaptation projects in the region, while serving as an example for other regional taxonomies."
Reorienting financial instruments for adaptation
The report authors highlight a strong case for reorienting financial instruments to directly target adaptation and resilience outcomes, rather than treating them as secondary components within climate portfolios.
"Concessional windows, guarantees, and first-loss tranches should be calibrated to the risk and revenue characteristics of adaptation projects, with dedicated provision for grant-funded technical assistance, safeguards, and monitoring," suggests Iyer.
"Even modest allocations can substantially improve climate impact and financial performance. Development banks and finance institutions can play a pivotal role by structuring facilities that bundle smaller, localized adaptation measures into larger portfolios aligned with national priorities and crowd in commercial lenders," adds Tan.
Emerging instruments such as adaptation and resilience bonds also demonstrate the strategic use of capital markets to scale up adaptation needs.
From 2015 to 2024, climate change adaptation received only around 6-10% of total proceeds across both corporate and sovereign issuances, indicating significant untapped potential. A notable example is the Tokyo Resilience Bond, the first bond to be certified under the Climate Bonds Standard. With a size of EUR300 million, it was oversubscribed seven times, signaling strong investor demand and offering a replicable model for scaling adaptation finance in the region.
"Sovereigns can leverage internationally recognized standards to enhance credibility and attract a broader pool of global investors," explains Iyer. "When combined with development bank credit enhancements or guarantees -- particularly for countries with weaker sovereign ratings -- such instruments can provide a practical pathway to attract private capital and finance priority climate resilience projects."
For financially vulnerable countries, debt restructuring or debt exchange mechanisms linked to climate resilience commitments warrant deeper consideration.
"Debt-for-resilience swaps can help ease fiscal pressures, while creating dedicated funding streams for priority adaptation programs aligned with national plans," says Tan.
Read the report: Scaling adaptation finance in Southeast Asia (https://ieefa.org/resources/scaling-adaptation-finance-southeast-asia)
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Original text here: https://ieefa.org/articles/actions-unlock-adaptation-financing-can-shield-southeast-asia-climate-shocks
[Category: Energy]
CFPB on "Life Support" One Year After It Was Targeted for Shutdown
YONKERS, New York, Feb. 10 -- Consumer Reports posted the following news release:
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CFPB on "life support" one year after it was targeted for shutdown
Consumers are left more vulnerable to scams, fraud, and abusive financial practices
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One year after staff at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was first ordered to halt its work, the Bureau's future remains in limbo as a lawsuit filed by employees to prevent mass layoffs is under appeal. Since that initial stop work order was issued in February 2025, the CFPB's priorities have been dramatically narrowed, most enforcement actions
... Show Full Article
YONKERS, New York, Feb. 10 -- Consumer Reports posted the following news release:
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CFPB on "life support" one year after it was targeted for shutdown
Consumers are left more vulnerable to scams, fraud, and abusive financial practices
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One year after staff at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was first ordered to halt its work, the Bureau's future remains in limbo as a lawsuit filed by employees to prevent mass layoffs is under appeal. Since that initial stop work order was issued in February 2025, the CFPB's priorities have been dramatically narrowed, most enforcement actionshave been dropped, funding slashed, and regulatory guidance abandoned.
"The CFPB may still be standing, but it's essentially on life support," said Chuck Bell, advocacy program director at Consumer Reports. "Dismantling the CFPB sends the message that it's open season on consumers because the financial cop that was created by Congress to protect our wallets from unscrupulous financial firms has been taken off the beat. Without the CFPB standing up for consumers and taking on the big banks and predatory lenders, we're all more vulnerable to abusive financial practices and costly fraud and scams."
Over the past year, the CFPB's ability to protect consumers has been severely undermined in a number of ways:
Stop Work Order: In February 2025, CFPB employees were told to stop all work, and cease all supervision and examination activity and "stakeholder engagement, and the Bureau's headquarters was closed.
Dropping Enforcement Efforts: Over the past year, the CFPB has abandoned more than 22 enforcement actions against banks and other financial companies that engaged in a variety of unfair and abusive practices. In addition, the CFPB abolished or modified orders in 20 other settled cases that would have provided refunds and restitution to consumers harmed by unfair conduct by banks and financial companies.
Among the most significant cases dropped by the CFPB are its lawsuit against Capital One for cheating savings account holders out of $2 billion in interest for failing to disclose higher-rate accounts; its suit against Zelle and the major banks that operate it for failing to protect consumers from widespread fraud on the payment platform; and its $95 million settlement with Navy Federal Credit Union for deceptive overdraft fees, which was abandoned without explanation. Altogether, these dropped cases had the potential to return more than $3 billion in refunds and restitution to consumers.
Mass Layoffs: In February 2025, dozens of probationary workers were fired, including many in the enforcement division. Efforts to fire up to 90 percent of the staff are currently being challenged by the employees' union in court.
Deprioritizing oversight of Big Tech and Nonbank Financial Firms: In April 2025, an internal CFPB memo detailed how the Bureau was dramatically scaling back its supervisory and enforcement activities and deprioritizing oversight of nonbank financial firms and big tech companies that provide financial services. In particular, the memo notes that the CFPB was deprioritizing working on issues involving medical debt, peer-to-peer platforms and lending, student loans, remittances, consumer data, and digital payments. The move created an uneven regulatory playing field that leaves consumers at risk of being treated unfairly since Big Tech companies like Apple and Google are providing many of the same financial services as banks. In August, the CFPB proposed dramatically shrinking the number of auto finance, credit bureaus, debt collectors, and international money transmitter companies subject to examination.
Rescinding Regulatory Guidance Documents: Over the past year, the CFPB has withdrawn 67 regulatory guidance documents, including interpretive rules, policy statements and advisory opinions adopted by the Bureau since 2011. For example, CFPB's proposed modification of guidance relating to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) would remove disparate-impact liability, reduce credit programs for underserved borrowers, and undermine decades of progress in combating discrimination in lending. The CFPB also rescinded guidance governing medical debt and time barred debt, which was adopted to protect consumers from inaccurate credit reports and aggressive debt collection practices.
Abandoning Rules to Reduce Excessive Fees: The CFPB also backed away from longstanding efforts to lower excessive late fees for credit cards, which would have saved consumers $10 billion, by withdrawing a final rule and refusing to defend it in court. A similar rule to reduce overdraft fees at the nation's largest banks which would have saved consumers another $5 billion was overturned by Congress last year after extensive lobbying by banks and trade groups.
Defunding Efforts: The Bureau refused to request quarterly funding for the CFPB in 2025 in an attempt to exhaust its funding by early 2026. Then the Bureau said its funding drawn from the Federal Reserve was illegal since the Fed had been operating at a loss. In December 2025, a federal court disagreed and ordered that the funding be sought. Last summer, Congress passed a budget reconciliation bill that effectively cut the CFPB's funding nearly in half by reducing the amount of funds it could draw from the Federal Reserve.
Consumer complaint database neglected: Since its inception, CFPB has operated a consumer complaints portal, which helps customers resolve problems with banks and other financial companies. Complaints received by the CFPB are forwarded to the company at issue, and most consumers receive a response in 15-30 days.
Staff cuts at CFPB have reduced the agency's capacity for intake and resolution of complaints, at a time when the overall number of complaints are surging. A recent analysis by the Consumer Federation of America found that over 830,000 complaints are currently unresolved. As CFPB's watchdog function to engage in investigations and enforcement has receded, banks and financial companies may have less incentive to take complaints seriously.
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Original text here: https://advocacy.consumerreports.org/press_release/cfpb-on-life-support-one-year-after-it-was-targeted-for-shutdown/
[Category: Business]
AU & Allies Sue Over Trump Administration's Biased 'Religious Liberty Commission'
WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 -- Americans United for Separation of Church and State issued the following news on Feb. 9, 2026:
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AU & allies sue over Trump administration's biased 'Religious Liberty Commission'
New York City - A multifaith coalition has united to file a lawsuit challenging the unlawful creation of the Trump-Vance administration's so-called Religious Liberty Commission, pointing to violations of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and the unbalanced and biased viewpoints assembled for the panel. The lawsuit comes as the commission meets today at the Museum of the Bible.
Religious
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 -- Americans United for Separation of Church and State issued the following news on Feb. 9, 2026:
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AU & allies sue over Trump administration's biased 'Religious Liberty Commission'
New York City - A multifaith coalition has united to file a lawsuit challenging the unlawful creation of the Trump-Vance administration's so-called Religious Liberty Commission, pointing to violations of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and the unbalanced and biased viewpoints assembled for the panel. The lawsuit comes as the commission meets today at the Museum of the Bible.
ReligiousLiberty Commission consists almost exclusively of Christians
The commission was established by Executive Order 14291 on May 1, 2025. Despite the guidelines set by law through FACA, the commission's membership consists exclusively of Christians, except for one Orthodox Jewish Rabbi, all of whom collectively represent the narrow perspective that America was founded as a "Judeo-Christian" nation and must be guided by Biblical principles. No members of the commission represent other minority religions, such as Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, or Sikhism, or non-religious Americans, and the commission's meetings have expressly adopted and promoted purportedly Judeo-Christian ideals and viewpoints, with members routinely expressing their views during meetings that the United States is a Judeo-Christian or Christian nation.
The legal challenge is being brought by Interfaith Alliance, Muslims For Progressive Values, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, and Hindus For Human Rights. The coalition is represented by Americans United for Separation of Church and State and Democracy Forward. It asks that the court declare that the commission was created and administered in violation of federal law, to require the disclosure of documents that should already be public, and to ensure that any recommendations produced by this body are clearly identified as coming from an unlawfully constituted commission.
"Religious freedom for some is religious freedom for none," said Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, president and CEO of Interfaith Alliance. "The government has no right to pick and choose which religious beliefs to promote, and which to marginalize. The Trump administration has failed to uphold our country's proud religious freedom tradition, and we will hold them accountable. Today's lawsuit is our recommitment to fight for religious liberty for all with every tool available to us."
"As a Muslim American organization, we have seen first hand how elevating a singular religion above others, especially in a country as religiously diverse as the United States, leads to the oppression and possible persecution of minority faiths," said Ani Zonneveld, president and founder of Muslims for Progressive Values. "As Americans, we must work together so that no form of religious supremacy cements itself in our country."
"Religious freedom and religious liberty for all are foundational American values. America thrives when all religious traditions are respected and diverse perspectives considered in the public realm. As Americans, we must work together to ensure these values are upheld," said Kiran Kaur Gill, executive director of the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund.
"Religious liberty means religious liberty for everyone, not just one faith community. By stacking this Religious Liberty Commission with a narrow set of voices and hiding the commission's work from the public eye, the Trump administration is evading the transparency and balance that federal law requires. Hindus for Human Rights is proud to stand with our multifaith partners to defend a pluralistic democracy where Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Jews, Christians, Buddhists, and nonreligious people all belong as equals," said Ria Chakrabarty, senior policy director of Hindus for Human Rights.
Religious Liberty Commission must follow FACA requirements
Congress enacted FACA in 1972 to curb the executive branch's reliance on secretive and biased advisory committees, and the law establishes strict requirements for the creation and conduct of committees that are intended to influence national policy. Every advisory committee must meet public transparency requirements, be in the public interest, be fairly balanced among competing points of view, and be structured to avoid inappropriate influence by special interests.
"The Religious Liberty Commission isn't about protecting religious liberty for all; it's about rejecting our nation's religious diversity and prioritizing one narrow set of conservative 'Judeo-Christian' beliefs," said Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United. "The commission's public meetings - most of which have been held at the Museum of the Bible and have been dominated by a very specific brand of Christian faith, Christian prayers, and predominantly Christian speakers - are a vivid example of this favoritism. The commission's true purpose and operations can't be squared with America's constitutional promise of church-state separation."
"Since the nation's founding, the values of religious liberty and pluralism have been central to the American identity. These values are now under accelerated attack. The Trump-Vance administration's Religious Liberty Commission is not about religious liberty, it is about pursuing a culture of Christian Nationalism that seeks to divide and isolate people across our nation," said Skye Perryman, president & CEO of Democracy Forward. "The fatally flawed way this commission was assembled makes clear that the outcome isn't just un-American, it's against the law. Inspired by this diverse multifaith coalition of plaintiffs and their commitment to true religious liberty, we will continue to use every legal tool available to protect the American people and the best of our nation's values."
The case before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York is Interfaith Alliance et al. v. Trump et al. The legal team on this case includes Anna Deffebach, Robin Thurston, and Ayesha Khan from Democracy Forward and Jenny Samuels from Americans United.
*Perryman also serves as a member of the Board of Interfaith Alliance.
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Americans United is a religious freedom advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, AU educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.
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Original text here: https://www.au.org/the-latest/press/religious-liberty-commission-lawsuit/
[Category: Political]
