CFPB Stability Act Subjects the Lawless Agency to Appropriations and Bipartisan Commission Structure
NASHVILLE, TN—United States Senators Bill Hagerty (R-TN), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, and Senate Banking Committee Ranking Member Pat Toomey (R-PA) introduced the CFPB Stability Act to make the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) accountable to Congress and the American people. The legislation will reform the agency’s unconstitutional funding structure by subjecting it to congressional appropriations. It would also replace the agency’s single director with a bipartisan five-member commission—an idea previously endorsed by Democrats and Republicans.
“I’m pleased to introduce this legislation with Senator Toomey to bring much-needed accountability to the CFPB,” said Senator Hagerty. “For too long, the CFPB has avoided congressional oversight through the unconstitutional funding structure by hiding it within the Federal Reserve. Subjecting the CFPB to congressional appropriations and creating a bipartisan commission will finally restore Americans’ trust in this agency.”
“Under Director Chopra, the CFPB is more out of control than ever,” said Senator Toomey. “The CFPB Stability Act will make the agency constitutional and accountable to Congress and the American people by subjecting it to congressional appropriations and converting it into a bipartisan, multi-member commission just like the FDIC and SEC.”
The CFPB Stability Act will address these concerns by making the CFPB’s funding accountable to Congress through appropriations, and by replacing the agency’s single director with a five-member, bipartisan commission, similar to structures at numerous other government boards, including the SEC, FDIC, FCC, and FEC. Making the CFPB a commission is a well-established bipartisan idea, as members of both parties have repeatedly cosponsored legislation to convert the CFPB into a commission.
The Senators urge their colleagues to support this legislation to ensure a smooth transition in the event that the U.S. Supreme Court upholds the Fifth Circuit’s ruling on the unconstitutionality of the agency’s current funding structure.
Full text of this legislation can be found here.
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