Thursday, May 19, 2011

Congress Aims To Limit Powers Of The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a federal agency in charge of financial, credit card, and mortgage oversight created as part of the Dodd Frank Financial Reform Act, may be toothless before it even gets started.  The CFPB was slated to start operations in July, but Congress is considering measures that may weaken it before it even starts.  Already last week, the House Financial Services Committee passed three bills that sought to take control of the CFPB.  Among other things, the bills created a bipartisan commission to oversee it and made it easier for other regulators to veto any new CFPB rules.

The CFPB is headed by Elizabeth Warren, a relentless critic of these powerful financial institutions (thus the big fat bulls-eye on her back).  The CFPB has already started working on regulating mortgage loan disclosures, with the "Know Before You Owe" project, designed to clearly spell out loan terms when a borrower applies for a mortgage.

More on the brewing battle from MSNBC.

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