Washington
Bank groups sue the CFPB over a proposed cap on overdraft fees
Some banks and banking trade groups are suing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over a finalized rule that limits overdraft fees banks can charge.
The rule is part of President Joe Biden administration’s campaign to reduce junk fees that hit consumers on everyday purchases, including banking services.
But banks argue that without overdraft protection, desperate consumers will instead lean on worse, unregulated services to ease their crunch.
Under the finalized rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that was announced on Thursday, banks will be able to choose from three options: they may charge a flat overdraft fee of $5, they may charge a fee that covers their costs and losses, or they may charge any fee so long as they disclose the terms of the overdraft loan the way they would for any other loan, typically expressed as an annual percentage rate, or APR.
While banks have cut back on overdraft fees in the past decade, the nation’s biggest banks still take in roughly $8 billion in the charges every year, according to data from the CFPB and bank public records. Currently, there is no cap on the overdraft fees that banks can legally charge.
The finalized rule is set to take effect in October 2025, but the incoming Trump administration has yet to tap anyone to lead the CFPB, and has mentioned the idea of eliminating the agency.
The finalized rule applies to banks and credit unions that have more than $10 billion in assets, which includes the nation’s largest banks. Banks have previously sued the CFPB over these rules and caps on credit card late fees. Congress also has the ability to challenge or overturn the rule.
The Consumer Bankers Association filed the lawsuit along with the American Bankers Association, America’s Credit Unions and Mississippi Bankers Association and other banks. The group claims that the CFPB is exceeding its regulatory authority with the new rule.
“Research shows that overdraft services provide much-needed liquidity during a short-term budget shortfall so consumers can put food on the table, keep the lights on, and make other important payments on time,” CBA President and CEO Lindsey Johnson said in a statement. “Without overdraft services, consumers on the margins are more likely to turn toward worse, less-regulated non-banking services to fill the gap.”
The complaint was filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Northern Division. CBA and its co-plaintiffs are also seeking a preliminary injunction barring the CFPB from implementing the new rule until the court makes a final decision on the merits of the case.
Florida
Woman charged with threatening health insurance company after saying ‘delay, deny, depose’
LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — A Florida woman has been charged with threatening her health insurance provider during a phone conversation after police say she uttered the same words found on the bullet casings used in the killing of an insurance executive in New York.
Briana Boston, 42, told a representative of Blue Cross Blue Shield, “Delay, deny, depose. You people are next” as they ended a phone call Tuesday in which she unsuccessfully challenged the company’s denial of her insurance claim, Lakeland police say a recording shows.
The words “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were written on the casings left at the scene of the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a New York City street on Dec. 4. The words reflect the “delay, deny, defend” strategy some insurance companies use in dealing with expensive claims: Delay the decision, deny the claim and aggressively defend themselves.
Luigi Mangione, 26, is charged with murder in Thompson’s killing.
According to police, when Boston was questioned by officers Wednesday, she told them she used the words because “it is what is in the news right now.” She told officers she owns no guns and is accused of adding that insurance companies “are evil” and “deserve karma.”
Boston was arrested and charged with threatening to conduct an act of terrorism. She was being held without bail Friday at the Polk County jail. Court records do not show whether she has an attorney, and a phone listing at her home address was disconnected.
The charge is a second-degree felony, which could be punished by up to 15 years in prison if she is convicted.
Washington
McKinsey & Company agrees to pay $650 million to settle federal probe over opioids work
WASHINGTON (AP) — McKinsey & Company consulting firm has agreed to pay $650 million to settle a federal investigation into its work for opioids manufacturer Purdue Pharma, according to court papers filed in Virginia on Friday.
McKinsey has also entered into a deferred prosecution agreement to resolve criminal charges, including that it conspired with Purdue Pharma to aid in the misbranding of prescription drugs.
A former McKinsey senior partner has also agreed to plead guilty to obstruction of justice, according to the court papers.
McKinsey representatives didn’t immediately respond to phone and email messages on Friday.
Since 2021, McKinsey has agreed to pay state and local governments about $765 million in settlements for its role in advising businesses on how to sell more of the powerful prescription painkillers amid a national opioid crisis.
The consulting firm also agreed last year to pay health care funds and insurance companies $78 million.
The U.S. has been in an addiction and overdose crisis for decades, linked to more than 80,000 deaths in recent years. For the past decade, most of the deaths have been attributed to illicit fentanyl, which is laced into many illegal drugs. Earlier in the epidemic, prescription pills were the primary cause of death.
Some advocates say the crisis was touched off when Purdue Pharma’s OxyContin hit the market in 1996.
Three Purdue executives pleaded guilty to misbranding charges in 2007 and the company agreed to pay a fine. The company pleaded guilty to criminal charges in 2020 and agreed to $8.3 billion in penalties and forfeitures — most of which will be waived as long as it executes a settlement through bankruptcy court that is still in the works.
McKinsey documents made public over the years describe Purdue using the consulting firm to help “turbocharge” opioid sales in 2013, as blowback against the opioid crisis meant that the company’s drugs were being prescribed less.
Tennessee
Country star Morgan Wallen sentenced in chair-throwing case
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Country music star Morgan Wallen on Thursday pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment for throwing a chair from the rooftop of a six-story bar in Nashville and nearly hitting two police officers with it.
Wallen, who appeared in court alongside his attorney, was sentenced to spend seven days in a DUI education center and be under supervised probation for two years.
“Conditionally guilty,” Wallen said when Judge Cynthia Chappell asked how he would plead.
According to the arrest affidavit, Wallen was accused of throwing a chair off the roof of Chief’s bar on April 7. The chair landed about a yard (meter) from the officers, who spoke to witnesses and reviewed security footage. Witnesses told officers that they saw Wallen pick up a chair, throw it off the roof and laugh about it.
Shortly after the incident, Wallen issued a statement in which he said he accepted “responsibility” and was “not proud” of his behavior. The statement did not include an apology but did mention making “amends” and touching base with law enforcement.
The “One Thing at a Time” singer was initially charged with three felony counts of reckless endangerment and one misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct.
Worrick Robinson, Wallen’s attorney, said in a statement that the singer “has cooperated fully with authorities throughout these last eight months, directly communicating and apologizing to all involved.”
“Upon the successful completion of his probation, the charges will be eligible for dismissal and expungement,” Robinson added.
Wallen did not make a statement after the brief 10-minute hearing concluded on Thursday. Instead, he was quickly escorted out by several security guards.
Wallen is one of the biggest names in contemporary country and was named the Country Music Association Awards’ entertainer of the year last month.
In 2021, Wallen was suspended indefinitely from his label after video surfaced of him shouting a racial slur. In 2020, he was arrested on public intoxication and disorderly conduct charges after being kicked out of Kid Rock’s bar in downtown Nashville.
Nevada
State attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A slate of six Nevada Republicans have again been charged with submitting a bogus certificate to Congress that declared Donald Trump the winner of the presidential battleground’s 2020 election.
Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford announced Thursday that the state’s fake electors case had been revived in Carson City, the capital, where he filed a new complaint this week charging the defendants with “uttering a forged instrument,” a felony. The original indictment was dismissed earlier this year after a state judge ruled that Clark County, the state’s most populous county and home to Las Vegas, was the wrong venue for the case.
Ford, a Democrat, said the new case was filed as a precaution to avoid the statute of limitations expiring while the Nevada Supreme Court weighs his appeal of the judge’s ruling.
“While we disagree with the finding of improper venue and will continue to seek to overturn it, we are preserving our legal rights in order to ensure that these fake electors do not escape justice,” Ford said. “The actions the fake electors undertook in 2020 violated Nevada criminal law and were direct attempts to both sow doubt in our democracy and undermine the results of a free and fair election. Justice requires that these actions not go unpunished.”
Officials have said it was part of a larger scheme across seven battleground states to keep Trump in the White House after losing to Democrat Joe Biden. Criminal cases have also been brought in Michigan, Georgia and Arizona.
Trump lost in 2020 to Biden by more than 30,000 votes in Nevada. An investigation by then-Nevada Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske, a Republican, found no credible evidence of widespread voter fraud in the state.
The defendants are state GOP chair Michael McDonald; Clark County GOP chair Jesse Law; national party committee member Jim DeGraffenreid; national and Douglas County committee member Shawn Meehan; Storey County clerk Jim Hindle; and Eileen Rice, a party member from the Lake Tahoe area.
In an emailed statement to The Associated Press, McDonald’s attorney, Richard Wright, called the new complaint a political move by a Democratic state attorney general who also announced Thursday he plans to run for governor in 2026.
“We will withhold further comment and address the issues in court,” said Wright, who has spoken often in court on behalf of all six defendants.
Their lawyers previously argued that Ford improperly brought the case before a grand jury in Democratic-leaning Las Vegas instead of in a northern Nevada city, where the alleged crimes occurred.
Bank groups sue the CFPB over a proposed cap on overdraft fees
Some banks and banking trade groups are suing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over a finalized rule that limits overdraft fees banks can charge.
The rule is part of President Joe Biden administration’s campaign to reduce junk fees that hit consumers on everyday purchases, including banking services.
But banks argue that without overdraft protection, desperate consumers will instead lean on worse, unregulated services to ease their crunch.
Under the finalized rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that was announced on Thursday, banks will be able to choose from three options: they may charge a flat overdraft fee of $5, they may charge a fee that covers their costs and losses, or they may charge any fee so long as they disclose the terms of the overdraft loan the way they would for any other loan, typically expressed as an annual percentage rate, or APR.
While banks have cut back on overdraft fees in the past decade, the nation’s biggest banks still take in roughly $8 billion in the charges every year, according to data from the CFPB and bank public records. Currently, there is no cap on the overdraft fees that banks can legally charge.
The finalized rule is set to take effect in October 2025, but the incoming Trump administration has yet to tap anyone to lead the CFPB, and has mentioned the idea of eliminating the agency.
The finalized rule applies to banks and credit unions that have more than $10 billion in assets, which includes the nation’s largest banks. Banks have previously sued the CFPB over these rules and caps on credit card late fees. Congress also has the ability to challenge or overturn the rule.
The Consumer Bankers Association filed the lawsuit along with the American Bankers Association, America’s Credit Unions and Mississippi Bankers Association and other banks. The group claims that the CFPB is exceeding its regulatory authority with the new rule.
“Research shows that overdraft services provide much-needed liquidity during a short-term budget shortfall so consumers can put food on the table, keep the lights on, and make other important payments on time,” CBA President and CEO Lindsey Johnson said in a statement. “Without overdraft services, consumers on the margins are more likely to turn toward worse, less-regulated non-banking services to fill the gap.”
The complaint was filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Northern Division. CBA and its co-plaintiffs are also seeking a preliminary injunction barring the CFPB from implementing the new rule until the court makes a final decision on the merits of the case.
Florida
Woman charged with threatening health insurance company after saying ‘delay, deny, depose’
LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — A Florida woman has been charged with threatening her health insurance provider during a phone conversation after police say she uttered the same words found on the bullet casings used in the killing of an insurance executive in New York.
Briana Boston, 42, told a representative of Blue Cross Blue Shield, “Delay, deny, depose. You people are next” as they ended a phone call Tuesday in which she unsuccessfully challenged the company’s denial of her insurance claim, Lakeland police say a recording shows.
The words “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were written on the casings left at the scene of the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a New York City street on Dec. 4. The words reflect the “delay, deny, defend” strategy some insurance companies use in dealing with expensive claims: Delay the decision, deny the claim and aggressively defend themselves.
Luigi Mangione, 26, is charged with murder in Thompson’s killing.
According to police, when Boston was questioned by officers Wednesday, she told them she used the words because “it is what is in the news right now.” She told officers she owns no guns and is accused of adding that insurance companies “are evil” and “deserve karma.”
Boston was arrested and charged with threatening to conduct an act of terrorism. She was being held without bail Friday at the Polk County jail. Court records do not show whether she has an attorney, and a phone listing at her home address was disconnected.
The charge is a second-degree felony, which could be punished by up to 15 years in prison if she is convicted.
Washington
McKinsey & Company agrees to pay $650 million to settle federal probe over opioids work
WASHINGTON (AP) — McKinsey & Company consulting firm has agreed to pay $650 million to settle a federal investigation into its work for opioids manufacturer Purdue Pharma, according to court papers filed in Virginia on Friday.
McKinsey has also entered into a deferred prosecution agreement to resolve criminal charges, including that it conspired with Purdue Pharma to aid in the misbranding of prescription drugs.
A former McKinsey senior partner has also agreed to plead guilty to obstruction of justice, according to the court papers.
McKinsey representatives didn’t immediately respond to phone and email messages on Friday.
Since 2021, McKinsey has agreed to pay state and local governments about $765 million in settlements for its role in advising businesses on how to sell more of the powerful prescription painkillers amid a national opioid crisis.
The consulting firm also agreed last year to pay health care funds and insurance companies $78 million.
The U.S. has been in an addiction and overdose crisis for decades, linked to more than 80,000 deaths in recent years. For the past decade, most of the deaths have been attributed to illicit fentanyl, which is laced into many illegal drugs. Earlier in the epidemic, prescription pills were the primary cause of death.
Some advocates say the crisis was touched off when Purdue Pharma’s OxyContin hit the market in 1996.
Three Purdue executives pleaded guilty to misbranding charges in 2007 and the company agreed to pay a fine. The company pleaded guilty to criminal charges in 2020 and agreed to $8.3 billion in penalties and forfeitures — most of which will be waived as long as it executes a settlement through bankruptcy court that is still in the works.
McKinsey documents made public over the years describe Purdue using the consulting firm to help “turbocharge” opioid sales in 2013, as blowback against the opioid crisis meant that the company’s drugs were being prescribed less.
Tennessee
Country star Morgan Wallen sentenced in chair-throwing case
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Country music star Morgan Wallen on Thursday pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment for throwing a chair from the rooftop of a six-story bar in Nashville and nearly hitting two police officers with it.
Wallen, who appeared in court alongside his attorney, was sentenced to spend seven days in a DUI education center and be under supervised probation for two years.
“Conditionally guilty,” Wallen said when Judge Cynthia Chappell asked how he would plead.
According to the arrest affidavit, Wallen was accused of throwing a chair off the roof of Chief’s bar on April 7. The chair landed about a yard (meter) from the officers, who spoke to witnesses and reviewed security footage. Witnesses told officers that they saw Wallen pick up a chair, throw it off the roof and laugh about it.
Shortly after the incident, Wallen issued a statement in which he said he accepted “responsibility” and was “not proud” of his behavior. The statement did not include an apology but did mention making “amends” and touching base with law enforcement.
The “One Thing at a Time” singer was initially charged with three felony counts of reckless endangerment and one misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct.
Worrick Robinson, Wallen’s attorney, said in a statement that the singer “has cooperated fully with authorities throughout these last eight months, directly communicating and apologizing to all involved.”
“Upon the successful completion of his probation, the charges will be eligible for dismissal and expungement,” Robinson added.
Wallen did not make a statement after the brief 10-minute hearing concluded on Thursday. Instead, he was quickly escorted out by several security guards.
Wallen is one of the biggest names in contemporary country and was named the Country Music Association Awards’ entertainer of the year last month.
In 2021, Wallen was suspended indefinitely from his label after video surfaced of him shouting a racial slur. In 2020, he was arrested on public intoxication and disorderly conduct charges after being kicked out of Kid Rock’s bar in downtown Nashville.
Nevada
State attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A slate of six Nevada Republicans have again been charged with submitting a bogus certificate to Congress that declared Donald Trump the winner of the presidential battleground’s 2020 election.
Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford announced Thursday that the state’s fake electors case had been revived in Carson City, the capital, where he filed a new complaint this week charging the defendants with “uttering a forged instrument,” a felony. The original indictment was dismissed earlier this year after a state judge ruled that Clark County, the state’s most populous county and home to Las Vegas, was the wrong venue for the case.
Ford, a Democrat, said the new case was filed as a precaution to avoid the statute of limitations expiring while the Nevada Supreme Court weighs his appeal of the judge’s ruling.
“While we disagree with the finding of improper venue and will continue to seek to overturn it, we are preserving our legal rights in order to ensure that these fake electors do not escape justice,” Ford said. “The actions the fake electors undertook in 2020 violated Nevada criminal law and were direct attempts to both sow doubt in our democracy and undermine the results of a free and fair election. Justice requires that these actions not go unpunished.”
Officials have said it was part of a larger scheme across seven battleground states to keep Trump in the White House after losing to Democrat Joe Biden. Criminal cases have also been brought in Michigan, Georgia and Arizona.
Trump lost in 2020 to Biden by more than 30,000 votes in Nevada. An investigation by then-Nevada Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske, a Republican, found no credible evidence of widespread voter fraud in the state.
The defendants are state GOP chair Michael McDonald; Clark County GOP chair Jesse Law; national party committee member Jim DeGraffenreid; national and Douglas County committee member Shawn Meehan; Storey County clerk Jim Hindle; and Eileen Rice, a party member from the Lake Tahoe area.
In an emailed statement to The Associated Press, McDonald’s attorney, Richard Wright, called the new complaint a political move by a Democratic state attorney general who also announced Thursday he plans to run for governor in 2026.
“We will withhold further comment and address the issues in court,” said Wright, who has spoken often in court on behalf of all six defendants.
Their lawyers previously argued that Ford improperly brought the case before a grand jury in Democratic-leaning Las Vegas instead of in a northern Nevada city, where the alleged crimes occurred.
