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The attorneys general stand together to argue that forced arbitration requirements regarding sexual harassment claims are unjust and that Congress must support legislation to ensure that victims of sexual harassment retain the right to have their claims heard in court.
The letter additionally raises concerns about the secrecy that often accompanies the resolution of charges of workplace sexual harassment or violence.
“Sexual harassment and violence strike at the very core of a civilized society -- who we say we are. No one should experience such horror, and anyone who does deserves their day in court,” said Attorney General Becerra. “All employees deserve to work in an environment where they are treated with dignity and value, free from harm or disrespect. We should be in the business of making it easier, not harder, for victims of sexual harassment in the workplace to come forward. My fellow Attorneys General and I urge Members of Congress to ensure that the justice system is open to all, and that those responsible for misconduct will be held accountable.”
Mandatory arbitration clauses prevent workers from going to court when they believe their rights have been violated.
These workers are instead forced into private arbitration, and they can be forced to give up their right to sue, participate in class actions, or appeal an adverse decision.
This letter, sponsored by the attorneys general of North Carolina and Florida, was signed by the Attorneys General of nearly every U.S. state, as well as the District of Columbia and four territories.
A copy of the letter can be found here.
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"As insurance commissioner and the leader of the largest consumer protection agency in the state, my top priority is protecting consumers," said Commissioner Jones. "Thanks to the hard work of our dedicated professionals and the authority given to me under Proposition 103, we succeeded in recovering over $81 million for California consumers."
Last year the department's consumer hotline received over 147,000 calls for assistance. Through the department's complaint handling efforts, staff recovered more than $62.4 million for consumers in 2017.
Additionally, the department performed 125 market conduct examinations, resulting in more than $18.9 million in recovered claims or premiums being returned to consumers.
Since Commissioner Jones took office in 2011, more than $469 million has been returned to consumers through the department's direct intervention.
Due to Proposition 103, in 2017 the department also saved consumers over $271 million in proposed insurance rate increases. Since 2003, $3.7 billion in proposed insurance rate increases has been saved by policyholders.
Proposition 103, passed by California voters in November 1988, establishes the Insurance Commissioner's authority to approve rates set by insurance companies.
It requires the commissioner's "prior approval" before insurance companies can implement property and casualty insurance rates.
The ballot measure also required each insurer to roll back its rates 20 percent.
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The new www.BuyCaliforniaBonds.com Web site offers greater efficiency and transparency to investors looking to invest confidently as they support California infrastructure projects.
“I am on a mission to make California government more transparent, accountable and responsive to the needs of the public through technological innovation,” said Treasurer Chiang. “By making the ‘what, when and why’s’ about the state’s finances, debt, and economic outlook available with a simple mouse click, I hope to entice more investors to finance projects of critical importance to our state, from transportation and clean water to schools and affordable housing.”
The new Web portal is a gateway to thousands of pages of financial data and documents about the state’s bond sales. Individual investors and institutional investors will find the site rewardingly simple to use.
New features include:
– A streamlined homepage that makes it easier to locate the website’s most viewed information.
Numerous investor resources, including financial documents and reports, bond ratings, bond sale information, frequently asked questions, contact information, and more.
– The ability to receive notifications about upcoming bond sales and whenever new documents are posted.
“More data that is easy to access and slice-and-dice will translate into more investor interest. More investors mean more competition and – ultimately – better deals for California taxpayers,” said Chiang.
The launch of the Web site coincides with the start of the 2018 bond sale season. The first offering utilizing the new BuyCaliforniaBonds.com website will be Feb. 22 when the iBank begins its sale of green revenue bonds for clean water projects.
During 2017, the State Treasurer’s Office sold more than $8.8 billion in general obligation bonds, $877 million in lease revenue bonds and $5.1 billion in revenue bonds for state agencies and universities.
Since Treasurer Chiang took office in January 2015, refunding has resulted in approximately $6.4 billion in public savings over the remaining life of the bonds.
BuyCaliforniaBonds.com is the third government transparency Web site launched by Chiang as State Treasurer. Earlier this year, he introduced California’s first online business development gateway, CBIG, to spur job creation and economic expansion in the state. In 2015, Chiang launched the award-winning DebtWatch Web site, which allows anyone in California to be a citizen watchdog and monitor precisely how taxpayer dollars are being spent within a community.
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Joining a coalition of 17 Attorneys General in filing an amicus brief, Attorney General Becerra underscored that, under law, the president may only appoint a new director for the CFPB by going through the normal Senate confirmation process.
That process would help ensure that the president appoints a director who is committed to protecting consumers from fraud, abuse, and unfair business practices, true to the CFPB’s mission.
The CFPB has returned more than $12 billion to American consumers since being created in the wake of the financial crisis. It was carefully crafted by Congress to be an independent agency.
“President Trump is attempting a hostile and illegal takeover of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. He has installed as acting director a man who has consistently sided with Wall Street over Main Street, and hardworking Americans have been suffering as a result,” said Attorney General Becerra. “In just three months in office, Mick Mulvaney has rolled back important consumer protections. Enough is enough. We are today making clear that the Trump Administration is not above the law and that the acting director of the CFPB should be Leandra English. The California Department of Justice has proudly worked with and defended this critical agency. We will continue doing so.”
On Nov. 24, 2017, CFPB Director Richard Cordray stepped down and Deputy Director Leandra English became acting director, pursuant to the law governing the CFPB.
That same day, President Donald Trump moved to politically appoint a known antagonist of the CFPB, the current Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney, as the acting CFPB Director.
Among some of the most egregious actions Mick Mulvaney has taken to undermine the CFBP are:
– Jan. 18, 2018: Mulvaney drops lawsuit against payday lenders.
– Jan. 19, 2018: Mulvaney requests a total of $0 for the CFPB’s second-quarter budget.
– Jan. 25, 2018: Mulvaney delays rule that would have provided protections for consumers who use prepaid cards.
– Feb. 5, 2018: Mulvaney reportedly ends CFPB’s investigation of Equifax. In September, Equifax, one of the nation’s three major credit reporting agencies, announced that it had suffered a massive data breach, which affected 145 million Americans and over 15 million Californians.
In filing the amicus brief, Attorney General Becerra joined the attorneys general of Washington D.C, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai'i, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.
Last month, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia denied Deputy Director Leandra English’s motion for a preliminary injunction and left Mick Mulvaney in charge of the CFPB.
Deputy Director Leandra English appealed that decision, and the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has granted an expedited hearing.