Illinois People's Action Meets with U.S. Treasury
On Saturday, April 10, 2010, over 300 members of Illinois People’s Action hosted a community meeting in Peoria with the U.S. Treasury to address the continuing foreclosure crisis in Central Illinois and across the country.
“Between 1997 and 2007, foreclosures in Central Illinois increased by 600%. They’ve doubled again since 2007. And nationally, a new foreclosure is filed against another family every 13 seconds. There are 7.5 million families who are delinquent or in foreclosure right now. And fewer than 200,000 of them have received permanent modifications through the Treasury’s program,” said Reverend Tony Pierce, IPA board president and co-pastor of Heaven’s View Christian Church.
IPA demanded that Treasury get out of the Washington D.C. bubble last October, when IPA and PICO National Network leaders met with Treasury to discuss much needed revisions to the Treasury’s foreclosure prevention program known as HAMP- Home Affordable Modification Program. Treasury agreed to ten meetings across the country.
IPA leader Trenda Kennedy shared her story of trying to work out her loan through HAMP. Throughout the process, she has had to speak to 27 different Bank of America representatives and has had to send the same documentation more than 8 times.
IPA presented a list of ten demands to Thomas Heinemann, Director of Intergovernmental Relations with Treasury’s Homeownership Preservation Office. Among them, a demand for the Treasury Department to publicly and unequivocally support court-sponsored mediation programs to improve outcomes for borrowers. Objective data shows that there are fewer foreclosures in places where these programs exist, but the big banks have been spending millions of dollars on lobbyists to fight these programs. Heinemann agreed to review the data and respond to the demand within two weeks.
At the conclusion of the meeting, 200 people marched to a local Advance America storefront. “Advance America is the poster child of the bad old economy,” said Reverend Charlotte Dotts, “We rescued the banks, who borrow public money at 0% interest, and then they finance payday lenders at 3% interest, so that they can turn around and loan it back to us at 300%.” Advance America, the largest payday lender, has a $270 million revolving line of credit with Bank of America, Wells Fargo and other big banks.
Illinois People’s Action (formerly the Central Illinois Organizing Project) is a statewide inter-faith community organization working for social justice. It has chapters in Bloomington-Normal, Champaign-Urbana-Danville, Decatur, East St. Louis, Peoria, and Springfield. IPA is an affiliate of National People’s Action.
For more information: www.ciop.org or www.showdownonforeclosures.wordpress.com
Illinois People's Action (IPA)--formerly Central Illinois Organizing Project--is an Affiliate of National People's Action and a statewide inter-faith community organization working for social justice. It has chapters in Bloomington-Normal, Champaign-Urbana-Danville, Decatur, East St. Louis, Peoria, and Springfield.
“Between 1997 and 2007, foreclosures in Central Illinois increased by 600%. They’ve doubled again since 2007. And nationally, a new foreclosure is filed against another family every 13 seconds. There are 7.5 million families who are delinquent or in foreclosure right now. And fewer than 200,000 of them have received permanent modifications through the Treasury’s program,” said Reverend Tony Pierce, IPA board president and co-pastor of Heaven’s View Christian Church.
IPA demanded that Treasury get out of the Washington D.C. bubble last October, when IPA and PICO National Network leaders met with Treasury to discuss much needed revisions to the Treasury’s foreclosure prevention program known as HAMP- Home Affordable Modification Program. Treasury agreed to ten meetings across the country.
IPA leader Trenda Kennedy shared her story of trying to work out her loan through HAMP. Throughout the process, she has had to speak to 27 different Bank of America representatives and has had to send the same documentation more than 8 times.
IPA presented a list of ten demands to Thomas Heinemann, Director of Intergovernmental Relations with Treasury’s Homeownership Preservation Office. Among them, a demand for the Treasury Department to publicly and unequivocally support court-sponsored mediation programs to improve outcomes for borrowers. Objective data shows that there are fewer foreclosures in places where these programs exist, but the big banks have been spending millions of dollars on lobbyists to fight these programs. Heinemann agreed to review the data and respond to the demand within two weeks.
At the conclusion of the meeting, 200 people marched to a local Advance America storefront. “Advance America is the poster child of the bad old economy,” said Reverend Charlotte Dotts, “We rescued the banks, who borrow public money at 0% interest, and then they finance payday lenders at 3% interest, so that they can turn around and loan it back to us at 300%.” Advance America, the largest payday lender, has a $270 million revolving line of credit with Bank of America, Wells Fargo and other big banks.
Illinois People’s Action (formerly the Central Illinois Organizing Project) is a statewide inter-faith community organization working for social justice. It has chapters in Bloomington-Normal, Champaign-Urbana-Danville, Decatur, East St. Louis, Peoria, and Springfield. IPA is an affiliate of National People’s Action.
For more information: www.ciop.org or www.showdownonforeclosures.wordpress.com
Illinois People's Action (IPA)--formerly Central Illinois Organizing Project--is an Affiliate of National People's Action and a statewide inter-faith community organization working for social justice. It has chapters in Bloomington-Normal, Champaign-Urbana-Danville, Decatur, East St. Louis, Peoria, and Springfield.
