CFPB Unconstitutional Says Director
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Kathy Kraninger informed congressional leaders and agency staff that she now supports a legal effort challenging the constitutionality of the regulator.
Numerous court cases argue that limits on a sitting president's ability to fire a CFPB director are unconstitutional. Courts previously have supported the statutory provision that a CFPB head can only be fired “for cause,” not simply at the president's discretion.
The CFPB, according to Kraninger's letter to House leaders, will join the Justice Department in supporting a Supreme Court review of a case pending before the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Kraninger told staff, “Getting closure on this constitutional question is going to ensure that we are even better equipped to accomplish the mission, and I look forward to that clarity.”
AFSA has long argued that the Bureau would be best led by a five-member, bipartisan commission, like every other regulatory agency in the nation’s capital. The association is pleased to see the Director’s decision not to oppose the proposed commission structure.
September 17th, 2019
