In a joint comment letter to several House members today, ABA and several financial trade groups expressed support for H.R. 5266, a bill that would transition the governance structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from having a sole director to a five-person, bipartisan commission. The bipartisan bill was introduced by Reps. Dennis Ross (R-Fla.), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), David Scott (D-Ga.) and Ann Wagner (R-Mo.).
“The current single director structure leads to uncertainty as we have witnessed in CFPB leadership from the Obama administration to the Trump administration. This uncertainty is not only borne by financial institutions providing significant lending services, but it negatively impacts America’s consumers, small businesses and our local economies,” the groups said. “A Senate-confirmed, bipartisan commission will provide a balanced and deliberative approach to supervision, regulation and enforcement by encouraging input from all stakeholders.”
The associations added that transitioning to a bipartisan commission structure has wide support, both from Congress and the public; similar bills have been passed multiple times on bipartisan votes by the House Financial Services Committee and the full House, and a recent Morning Consult poll noted that only 14 percent of the public favors maintaining the bureau’s current leadership structure.
