In a Washington Post article entitled “From the oil spill to the financial crisis,” U.S. Court of Appeals Judge and author Richard Posner described some of the reasons why we don’t adequately prepare for risks. Regarding the financial crisis, for example, he said,

After Le-Eunice L'Minggio paid a $1,200 down payment and got a financing plan approved for a $8,000 car from Thrifty Car Sales in Melrose Park, IL, she thought that was the end of negotiations on her loan terms. However, USA Today reports, she got a strange call a few days later. The dealership’s finance manager told her she would have to lie to the finance company about her financial situation in order to get a loan. L’Minggio refused and returned her car, but couldn’t get her down payment back. She went to court and won $13,200 in damages, but when her lawyer went to collect, the dealership was out of business.

While strong financial reform bills have passed the House and the Senate, the fight for meaningful reform is not over. This Thursday, House and Senate conferees are slated to start negotiations on the final version of the bill.

We need your help to make sure that the consumer financial protection agency that emerges from the conference is strong and independent, covers all financial products, and sets rules that are a floor, not a ceiling.

More women will declare bankruptcy than get college degrees this year. Over one quarter of U.S. households are unbanked or underbanked, and 85 percent of these consumers are people of color. For every dollar that white Americans have, Latinos have 12 cents and African-Americans have 10 cents.

Woodstock Vice President Tom Feltner joined Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) at a press conference to announce the passage of the Senate financial reform bill. Sen. Durbin, along with representatives from the Illinois Main Street Alliance, the Illinois Restaurant Association, Illinois PIRG, and the Chicago Federation of Labor, explained how the financial reform bill will help our communities recover and prevent another devastating financial crisis. For example, limits on the fees credit card companies charge small businesses will help small businesses invest in expansion and job creation. Another provision protects taxpayers from funding another bank bailout. Woodstock applauds Sen. Durbin on his leadership on financial reform.

Woodstock Institute applauds the Senate for taking a bold stand on behalf of America’s consumers. The Restoring American Financial Stability Act passed last night lays the groundwork for a healthier financial system that will hold banks accountable, protect consumers, and be more transparent—and, ultimately, help prevent another devastating financial crisis.