McLean, Va. - In response to the enforcement announcement on Dec. 20 by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Department of Justice (DOJ), the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) issued the following statement:

"NADA fully supports our nation's fair lending laws and the commitment of federal agencies to eliminate discrimination in the marketplace.

"Regrettably, in today's announced enforcement action, the CFPB continues to withhold the secret methodology it uses to determine whether unintentional discrimination has occurred. The public still does not know whether the bureau takes into account legitimate factors that can affect finance rates – for example, a dealer's ability, regardless of race, to lower the interest rate to meet a customer's monthly budget. The CFPB's failure to reveal its approach is particularly troubling given the repeated and recent requests from bi-partisan members of both houses of Congress for this essential information.

"We are encouraged that today's announcement does not mandate any form of a dealer flat fee compensation system. A flat fee system would eliminate consumers' right to save money by negotiating lower interest rates with their local car dealers."