The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was created after the financial crash by members of Congress who believed too many consumers were sold defective financial products. The CFPB would protect consumers just like the Consumer Product Safety Commission prevents appliance makers from selling shoddy toasters.
The situation in 2010 seemed so pressing that Congress gave this new bureau a single director, effectively answerable to no one. Furthermore, the agency’s funding was hard-wired into the Federal Reserve’s operating budget, entirely insulated from Congressional oversight. Congress believed the situation warranted the sacrifice of best practices . . .
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