Category Archives: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

CFPB Issues Debt Collection Studies, Finds a Quarter of Consumers Contacted By Debt Collectors Feel Threatened

Here.  Quoting from the Bureau's release:  Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) report released today found that over one-in-four consumers contacted by debt collectors felt threatened. The report was drawn from the first-ever national survey of consumer experiences with debt collectors. Over 40 percent of consumers who said they were approached about a debt in collection […]

GOP Senator Sasse: “It’s time to fire King Richard” Cordray of CFPB

by Jeff Sovern Senator Sasse joined with Senator Lee in a letter to President-Elect Trump; The Hill has the story here.  The letter doesn't mention that the Bureau has secured nearly $12 billion in relief for more than 27 million consumers, among other significant accomplishments. 

More Trump CFPB Transition/Landing Team Members Named, Including AEI Manager

by Jeff Sovern As earlier reported by the CFPB Monitor and elsewhere, President-Elect Trump has named three new members to the CFPB "Landing Team."  One of the members, Kyle Hauptman, is a Senior Development Manager at the American Enterprise Institute. The AEI has on its website some articles that may give clues as to Mr. […]

Adam Levitin: Calls to Fire Cordray are About Shilling for the Financial Industry and to Block Arbitration, Payday Lending Regs

by Jeff Sovern In a characteristically terrific post at Credit Slips, Georgetown's Adam Levitin explains the real reasons for calls to fire CFPB Director Cordray.  A worthy companion to Adam's recent op-ed at American Banker (free content), What the CFPB 'Commission' Debate Is Really About.   Both worth a read. 

Pamela Foohey Article on Complaints to the CFPB

Pamela Foohey of Indiana has written Calling on the CFPB for Help: Telling Stories and Consumer Protection, 80 Law & Contemporary Problems (Forthcoming). Here is the abstract: Since it began operating in 2011, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has handled more than a million complaints regarding consumer financial product and services. Beginning in June 2015, […]

Politico: CORDRAY WANTS TO STAY

Report here.  Here's what it says:  POLITICO's Lorraine Woellert: "Richard Cordray 'has no plans' to leave the top job at the CFPB, the agency said today. 'Director Cordray was confirmed by a bipartisan group of 66 senators to serve a term until July 2018 and has no plans to step down,' CFPB Communications Director Jen […]

How the FTC Demonstrates Why We Need a Strong, Independent, Pro-Consumer CFPB

by Jeff Sovern The FTC is a terrific agency that has done a lot of good for consumers.  Every FTC staffer I've ever met has impressed me as dedicated to consumer welfare, hard-working, and talented.  And yet, the FTC could do more if it weren't hamstrung by precisely the limits the financial industry and the […]

House “Freedom Caucus” Asks Trump to Kill CFPB Proposed Arbitration Rule; Is Freedom Just Another Word for Tricking/Trapping Consumers?

WSJ report here (behind paywall). The Caucus consists of 40 members.  The article reports that they seek rollback of 200 rules, but they anticipate that the number will rise. 

Am. Banker: Trump vs. Cordray: The Battle Ahead

Here (free content). The entire article is worth a read, but here are some highlights: J.W. Verret, an associate law professor at George Mason University School of Law, listed some reasons why he thinks Cordray could be removed for cause: allegations of employee discrimination and retaliation at the CFPB, and a settlement with auto lender Ally Financial that some […]

Am. Banker: CFPB on Collision Course with Trump’s Justice Department

Here.  Excerpt: * * * Title X of the Dodd-Frank Act * * * gives the agency explicit authority to pursue its own litigation up to and including the Circuit Court level. But when it comes to the Supreme Court, the law says the CFPB must first file a written request to the U.S. Attorney General […]