United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Encyclopedia
The United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is the federal agency that holds primary responsibility for regulating consumer protection
in the United States
. On July 17, 2011, President Barack Obama, who supported the establishment of the new agency, chose Richard Cordray
, a former Attorney General of Ohio, as his nominee to be the first Director of the CFPB. Elizabeth Warren
, special consultant in charge of implementing the bureau, was passed over. The bureau, which began operation on July 21, 2011, resulted from the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act during the 111th United States Congress
in response to the Late-2000s recession and financial crisis.
The CFPB opened its website in early February 2011 to accept suggestions from consumers via YouTube
, Twitter
and its own website interface. According to the United States Treasury Department, the bureau is tasked with the responsibility to "promote fairness and transparency for mortgages
, credit card
s, and other consumer financial products and services." According to the bureau's own webpage, "The central mission of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is to make markets for consumer financial products and services work for Americans—whether they are applying for a mortgage, choosing among credit cards, or using any number of other consumer financial products." The jurisdiction of the bureau includes banks, credit union
s, securities firms, payday lenders, mortgage-servicing operations, foreclosure relief services, debt collectors and other financial companies, and its most pressing concerns are mortgages, credit cards and student loans, according to incoming enforcement chief, Richard Cordray
.
The bureau will be an independent unit located inside and funded by the United States Federal Reserve, with interim affiliation with the U.S. Treasury Department. It will write and enforce bank rules, conduct bank examinations, monitor and report on markets, as well as collect and track consumer complaints.
From the outset, the structure of the organization was contested. On July 17, Cordray was selected over Warren as the head of the entire CFPB. However, his nomination was immediately in jeopardy because 44 Senate
Republicans had previously vowed to derail any nominee in order to encourage a decentralized structure to the organization. Senate Republicans had also shown a pattern of refusing to consider regulatory agency nominees, purportedly as a method of budget cutting. Others have suggested that Republicans have blocked Obama's nominations at a rate that has caused him to amass a record low level of nomination successes and a long list of notable failed nominations primarily for political gain. On July 21, Senator Richard Shelby
wrote an op-ed
article for The Wall Street Journal
affirming continued opposition (that went back to a May 5 letter to the President) to a centralized structure, noting that both the Securities Exchange Commission and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
had executive boards and that the CFPB should be no different. He noted lessons learned from experiences with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as support for his argument. Politico
interpreted Shelby's statements as saying that Cordray's nomination was "Dead on Arrival".
Status
Consumer protection
Consumer protection laws designed to ensure fair trade competition and the free flow of truthful information in the marketplace. The laws are designed to prevent businesses that engage in fraud or specified unfair practices from gaining an advantage over competitors and may provide additional...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. On July 17, 2011, President Barack Obama, who supported the establishment of the new agency, chose Richard Cordray
Richard Cordray
Richard Cordray is an American politician of the Democratic Party who last served as the Attorney General of Ohio. He has been chosen to run the enforcement division of the United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which officially began operating in July 2011...
, a former Attorney General of Ohio, as his nominee to be the first Director of the CFPB. Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth Warren is an American bankruptcy expert, policy advocate, Harvard Law School professor, and Democratic Party candidate in the 2012 United States Senate election in Massachusetts. She has written several academic and popular books concerning the American economy and personal finance. She...
, special consultant in charge of implementing the bureau, was passed over. The bureau, which began operation on July 21, 2011, resulted from the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act during the 111th United States Congress
111th United States Congress
The One Hundred Eleventh United States Congress was the meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government from January 3, 2009 until January 3, 2011. It began during the last two weeks of the George W. Bush administration, with the remainder spanning the first two years of...
in response to the Late-2000s recession and financial crisis.
The CFPB opened its website in early February 2011 to accept suggestions from consumers via YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
and its own website interface. According to the United States Treasury Department, the bureau is tasked with the responsibility to "promote fairness and transparency for mortgages
Mortgage loan
A mortgage loan is a loan secured by real property through the use of a mortgage note which evidences the existence of the loan and the encumbrance of that realty through the granting of a mortgage which secures the loan...
, credit card
Credit card
A credit card is a small plastic card issued to users as a system of payment. It allows its holder to buy goods and services based on the holder's promise to pay for these goods and services...
s, and other consumer financial products and services." According to the bureau's own webpage, "The central mission of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is to make markets for consumer financial products and services work for Americans—whether they are applying for a mortgage, choosing among credit cards, or using any number of other consumer financial products." The jurisdiction of the bureau includes banks, credit union
Credit union
A credit union is a cooperative financial institution that is owned and controlled by its members and operated for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit at competitive rates, and providing other financial services to its members...
s, securities firms, payday lenders, mortgage-servicing operations, foreclosure relief services, debt collectors and other financial companies, and its most pressing concerns are mortgages, credit cards and student loans, according to incoming enforcement chief, Richard Cordray
Richard Cordray
Richard Cordray is an American politician of the Democratic Party who last served as the Attorney General of Ohio. He has been chosen to run the enforcement division of the United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which officially began operating in July 2011...
.
The bureau will be an independent unit located inside and funded by the United States Federal Reserve, with interim affiliation with the U.S. Treasury Department. It will write and enforce bank rules, conduct bank examinations, monitor and report on markets, as well as collect and track consumer complaints.
From the outset, the structure of the organization was contested. On July 17, Cordray was selected over Warren as the head of the entire CFPB. However, his nomination was immediately in jeopardy because 44 Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Republicans had previously vowed to derail any nominee in order to encourage a decentralized structure to the organization. Senate Republicans had also shown a pattern of refusing to consider regulatory agency nominees, purportedly as a method of budget cutting. Others have suggested that Republicans have blocked Obama's nominations at a rate that has caused him to amass a record low level of nomination successes and a long list of notable failed nominations primarily for political gain. On July 21, Senator Richard Shelby
Richard Shelby
Richard Craig Shelby is the senior U.S. Senator from Alabama. First elected to the Senate in 1986, he is the ranking member of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and was its chairman from 2003 to 2007....
wrote an op-ed
Op-ed
An op-ed, abbreviated from opposite the editorial page , is a newspaper article that expresses the opinions of a named writer who is usually unaffiliated with the newspaper's editorial board...
article for The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
affirming continued opposition (that went back to a May 5 letter to the President) to a centralized structure, noting that both the Securities Exchange Commission and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is a United States government corporation created by the Glass–Steagall Act of 1933. It provides deposit insurance, which guarantees the safety of deposits in member banks, currently up to $250,000 per depositor per bank. , the FDIC insures deposits at...
had executive boards and that the CFPB should be no different. He noted lessons learned from experiences with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as support for his argument. Politico
Politico (newspaper)
The Politico is an American political journalism organization based in Arlington, Virginia, that distributes its content via television, the Internet, newspaper, and radio. Its coverage of Washington, D.C., includes the U.S. Congress, lobbying, media and the Presidency...
interpreted Shelby's statements as saying that Cordray's nomination was "Dead on Arrival".
List of Directors of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
PartiesStatus
| No. | Portrait | Name | State of Residence | Took Office | Left Office | President(s) President of the United States The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces.... |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth Warren is an American bankruptcy expert, policy advocate, Harvard Law School professor, and Democratic Party candidate in the 2012 United States Senate election in Massachusetts. She has written several academic and popular books concerning the American economy and personal finance. She... |
Massachusetts Massachusetts The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010... |
September 17, 2010 | August 1, 2011 | Barack Obama Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in... |
||
| - | Raj Date Raj Date Rajeev V. Date is the associate director of the United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.Date graduated from the University of California, Berkeley and Harvard Law School.Prior to joining CFPB, he worked at Capital One and Deutsche Bank... |
Massachusetts Massachusetts The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010... |
August 1, 2011 | Incumbent |