Attorney General joined a coalition of 18 attorneys general in a letter to Congress asking lawmakers to reject H.R. 7866, the attorney general’s office said.
The office said H.R. 7866 would eliminate states’ ability under Section 525 of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act to opt out of federal interest-rate preemption; removing that opt-out would prevent states from applying their usury laws to some loans made in their borders.
The office said nonbank lenders have exploited preemption by using sham partnerships with state banks to charge rates higher than state caps allow; the release cites a 2023 Colorado finding that a rent-a-bank operator made thousands of loans with annual rates above 100%, harming borrowers’ credit and access to affordable credit.
Attorney General Bonta said, “States play a crucial role in consumer financial protection,” and he added, “Through H.R. 7866, Congress is attempting to preempt these important laws, slashing states’ rights to protect consumers, and leaving Californians paying more.”
The attorney general’s office noted that Bonta joined a multistate amicus brief in July 2026 in National Association of Industrial Bankers v. Weiser supporting Colorado’s argument that the Section 525 opt-out allows a state to apply its usury laws to loans made in that state by out-of-state lenders.
If Congress passes H.R. 7866, the office warned, states would lose a tool to block high-cost lending, and consumers could face higher interest charges on some loans if state caps cannot be enforced.
State
Rob Bonta
Attorney General · Democrat
Named 3 times in this story.
Portrait: Official portrait
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