{"id":2910,"date":"2017-04-14T09:43:17","date_gmt":"2017-04-14T13:43:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/?p=2910"},"modified":"2022-12-13T10:12:38","modified_gmt":"2022-12-13T15:12:38","slug":"better-consumer-financial-protection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/2017\/04\/14\/better-consumer-financial-protection\/","title":{"rendered":"Demand better consumer financial protection"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright is-resized\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cutimes.com\/2015\/07\/31\/dodd-frank-anniversary-marked-by-soaring-complianc\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/media.cutimes.com\/cutimes\/article\/2015\/07\/31\/pg-3-infographic.jpg?resize=264%2C310\" alt=\"consumer financial protection\" width=\"264\" height=\"310\"\/><\/a><figcaption>Consumer Financial Protection and Dodd-Frank (infographic from CreditUnionTimes www,cutimes.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>In an effort to reform the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (<a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.consumerfinance.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\">consumerfinance.gov<\/a>) to become a better steward of consumer protection, <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20221213043323\/https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">H.R.5983 &#8211; Financial CHOICE Act of 2016<\/a> was introduced during the last congress.\u00a0 The effort to compel oversight on the now embattled agency, as well as provide for a panel of decision makers (in lieu of a single chairperson), is unfortunately highly politicized.\u00a0 As financial consumers, <strong>we should demand a better and fair protection agency serving without political motive.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>From the Executive Summary of the <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"http:\/\/financialservices.house.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Financial CHOICE Act<\/a><\/em><br \/><em>Creating Hope and Opportunity for Investors, Consumers and Entrepreneurs:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li> SECTION THREE: Empower Americans to achieve financial independence by fundamentally reforming the CFPB and protecting investors. <\/li><li>Change the name of the CFPB to the  \u201cConsumer Financial Opportunity Commission(CFOC),\u201d and task it with the  dual mission of consumer protection and competitive markets, with a  cost-benefit analysis of rules performed by an Office of Economic  Analysis.<\/li><li>Replace the current single director with  a bipartisan, five-member commission which is subject to congressional  oversight and appropriations.<\/li><li>Establish an independent, Senate-confirmed Inspector General.<\/li><li>Require the Commission obtain permission before collecting personally identifiable information on consumers.<\/li><li>Repeal authority to ban bank products or services it deems \u201cabusive\u201d and its authority to prohibit arbitration.<\/li><li>Repeal indirect auto lending guidance.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Some have hailed the CFPB because it was created out of good intention. There is no question that<a href=\"http:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/2015\/05\/13\/new-settlement-rules-may-facilitate-much-needed-communication\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> the CFPB has done a great job<\/a> in collecting and publicizing consumer complaints.&nbsp; The announcements of consumer complaints seem to be a public airing of consumer grievances, which sometimes signaled forthcoming action from the agency in a specific financial sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, critics contend that the CFPB rules have made <a href=\"http:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/2011\/04\/27\/what%e2%80%99s-the-big-deal-about-the-qualified-residential-mortgage-anyway\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">lending more burdensome<\/a> for both lenders and consumers by increasing bureaucratic red tape.&nbsp; It has also increased the cost of lending to consumers by adding levels of compliance measures that are now embedded within the lending process.&nbsp; Critics have also complained that the CFPB\u2019s enforcement is not fair and unequal in focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Critics are becoming increasingly vocal, not only because of the sometimes invasive rule making, but more recently of how offenders are chosen and penalized.&nbsp; Jacob Gaffney\u2019s article for HousingWire (<a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190802064933\/https:\/\/www.housingwire.com\/blogs\/1-rewired\/post\/38864-former-cfpb-attorney-pretty-much-just-confirmed-the-worst-fears-of-the-mortgage-industry\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>Former CFPB attorney pretty much just confirmed the worst fears of the mortgage industry<\/em><\/a>: housingwire.com; January 3, 2017) earlier this year discussed two genuine concerns about the CFPB:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">1) \u201c<em>The CFPB targets lenders for enforcement action based on opaque internal decisioning<\/em>;\u201d and<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">2) <em>\u201cMonetary penalties seemed determined by revenue, not equalitarian application of said enforcement action<\/em>.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Gaffney quoted Ronald Rubin, a former enforcement attorney at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, (from a December 21<sup>st<\/sup> 2016 piece \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/article\/443227\/consumer-financial-protection-bureaus-tragic-failures\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>The Tragic Downfall of the Consumer <\/em><\/a><em>Financial Protection<\/em><em> Bureau<\/em>\u201d published online nationalreview.com) as confirming these concerns.&nbsp; For example, the Wells Fargo fake consumer account scandal, one of the most egregious consumer scandals post financial crises, was not addressed by the CFPB (until it was too late) because Wells Fargo was allegedly \u201cnot a target of the agency at that time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Referring to the complaint database, Rubin stated:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">\u201c<em>The CFPB\u2019s complaint database contained grievances against almost every financial business. Enforcement targeted the companies with the most revenue\u2026rather than those with the most complaints.\u201d&nbsp; <\/em>He further stated: \u201c<em>Targets<\/em> (of the CFPB) <em>were almost certain to write a check\u2026 Even the size of the checks didn\u2019t depend on actual wrongdoing \u2014 during investigations, Enforcement demanded targets\u2019 financial statements to calculate the maximum fines they could afford to pay.<\/em>\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>The recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cadc.uscourts.gov\/internet\/opinions.nsf\/AAC6BFFC4C42614C852580490053C38B\/$file\/15-1177-1640101.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>PHH Corp v Consumer Financial <\/em><\/a><em>Protection Bureau<\/em> case <a href=\"http:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/2016\/10\/14\/liberty-housing-private-citizens\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">highlighted<\/a> some of the alleged abuse of power by an agency with no oversight.&nbsp; US Appellate Judge Kavanaugh wrote in his opinion:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">\u201c<em>That combination of power that is massive in scope, concentrated in a single person, and unaccountable to the President triggers the important constitutional question at issue in this case<\/em>&#8230;<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">&#8230;This is a case about executive power and individual liberty. The U.S. Government\u2019s executive power to enforce federal law against private citizens \u2013 for example, to bring criminal prosecutions and civil enforcement actions \u2013 is essential to societal order and progress, but simultaneously a grave threat to individual liberty.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>We\u2019ve followed the career of the CFPB since it was established in the <a href=\"http:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/2011\/09\/15\/a-novel-idea-consumer-friendly-mortgage-disclosure\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010<\/a>.&nbsp; Shortly after the financial crisis, we eagerly anticipated the new agency to help those who were the target of abusive lending and foreclosure practices.&nbsp; Since its inception, however, controversy has embraced the agency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By Dan Krell <br \/> Copyright\u00a9 2017<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you like this post, do not copy; instead please:<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/wp.me\/p1VZLf-KW\">link to the article<\/a>,<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/dankrellrealtor\/\">like it at facebook<\/a><br \/>or <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/dankrell\">re-tweet<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.copyscape.com\/plagiarism-detector\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"16\" width=\"234\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/banners.copyscape.com\/images\/cs-bk-3d-234x16.gif?resize=234%2C16\" alt=\"Protected by Copyscape Web Plagiarism Detector\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/disclaimer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Disclaimer<\/a>. This article is not intended to provide nor should it be relied upon for legal and financial advice. Readers should not rely solely on the information contained herein, as it does not purport to be comprehensive or render specific advice. Readers should consult with an attorney regarding local real estate laws and customs as they vary by state and jurisdiction. Using this article without permission is a violation of copyright laws.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In an effort to reform the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (consumerfinance.gov) to become a better steward of consumer protection, H.R.5983 &#8211; Financial CHOICE Act of 2016 was introduced during the last congress.\u00a0 The effort to compel oversight on the now embattled agency, as well as provide for a panel of decision makers (in lieu of &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/2017\/04\/14\/better-consumer-financial-protection\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Demand better consumer financial protection&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[383,433,432,1012,233,288,55,13,26],"tags":[724,913,710,475,511,892,466,821,797,593],"class_list":["post-2910","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-consumer","category-consumer-financial-protection-bureau","category-dodd-frank","category-home-buying","category-housing","category-housing-market","category-mortgage","category-real-estate","category-real-estate-market","tag-cfpb","tag-consumer","tag-consumer-financial-protection-bureau-2","tag-dodd-frank-2","tag-home-buying-process","tag-housing","tag-housing-market-2","tag-mortgage","tag-real-estate","tag-real-estate-market-2"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1VZLf-KW","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2910","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2910"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2910\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6585,"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2910\/revisions\/6585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2910"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2910"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dankrell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2910"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}