by Jeff Sovern
Yesterday, the Senate Banking Committee split, 12-12 on the vote to confirm FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra to be the next CFPB director. According to Neil Haggerty's report in the American Banker (behind a paywall but available on Lexis), the Senate can still confirm Chopra but it will first require a motion to discharge the nomination from the Committee. It's very disappointing that a majority of the Commmittee did not vote to confirm Chopra but the Senate still seems likely to confirm him.
In other nomination news, Irvine banking law professor Mehrsa Baradaran is said by Brendan Pederson and Kate Berry writing in the American Banker to be the top contender to lead the OCC. Given the OCC's history of being captured by the banks it regulates, if Baradaran gets the nod, it would be fascinating to see if she can make the OCC a more effective regulator. Her writings on race and consumer law issues in banking are extraordinary.
