Joseph Lawler reports in the Washington Examiner. Excerpt: [T]he resolution passed Tuesday raises a tricky legal question regarding what it means for Congress to disapprove of informal guidance that an agency sends to businesses. When Congress disapproves of a rule enforced by an agency, the meaning is clear: The agency is not allowed to enforce […]
American Banker reports that the "White House is dragging out the nomination of a permanent director for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to ensure that acting CFPB Director Mick Mulvaney calls the shots at the agency until the end of the year or longer." President Trump is expected to name J. Mark McWatters, the chairman […]
Eight of the 10 financial institutions that are the subjects of the most complaints in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau public database contributed to acting Director Mick Mulvaney while he was in Congress, according to an analysis published today by Public Citizen. Since 2012, the CFPB has maintained the publicly available database of consumer complaints […]
Adam Levitin has written about what this means–or doesn't mean–at Credit Slips.
The Wall Street Journal reports: "Wells Fargo said Friday it reached a $480 million preliminary settlement agreement in a securities fraud class-action suit. The settlement comes at a difficult time for Wells Fargo, which is dealing with multiple investigations and settlements. The problems kicked off in September 2016 when its sales-practices scandal erupted, and the […]
Here, in the LA Times. The headline reads White House-backed bill purports to strengthen consumer protection. It does the opposite. Excerpt: California's credit-freeze law, for example, says no one can access your credit file if a freeze is in place, including a potential employer performing a background check or an insurance company. The new federal bill, […]
by Jeff Sovern During the House Financial Services Committee hearing in which the Committee heard from CFPB Acting Director Mick Mulvaney, there was some discussion about how the number of CFPB staffers had barely gone down under Mr. Mulvaney's leadership–it was said that the number of CFPB employees had declined by something like ten–and that […]
by Jeff Sovern It remains unclear whether the House would simply pass the Senate bill (which seems more likely after recent remarks by House Financial Services Chair Hensarling) or whether the two chambers will negotiate changes, but Reuters reports here that House majority leader McCarthy has said the House vote could come this month. The […]
The Federal Trade Commission and the Food and Drug Administration today jointly issued 13 warning letters to manufacturers, distributors, and retailers for selling e-liquids used in e-cigarettes with labeling and/or advertising that resemble kid-friendly food products, such as juice boxes, candies, or cookies, some of them with cartoon-like imagery. Several of the companies receiving warning […]
by Jeff Sovern On April 18, the Senate Commerce Committee held a hearing on Robocalls. Among the witnesses was Adrian Abramovich, against whom the FCC has filed a forfeiture proceeding in which it seeks a penalty of $120 million. Abramavich, who testified under subpoena, commented that when he receives robocalls, he declines them or doesn't […]