Trump Administration guts agency’s enforcement abilities
The administration of President Donald J. Trump, largely through Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, is moving rapidly to shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ("CFPB").
On February 12, 2025, CNN reported that the CFPB had terminated contracts with several expert witnesses, a move that indicates enforcement actions will be abandoned. On the same day, over 70 CFPB employees had their positions terminated according to NPR. Although it is unable to commence any new investigations, the CFPB’s funding could not be immediately terminated, as its budget was pre-funded for the remainder of the fiscal year.
These moves came just one day after Senator Elizabeth Warren and 188 other Democratic politicians wrote to the Trump-appointed acting director of the CFPB demanding an end to the gutting of the agency. Prior to that, director Rohit Chopra was fired (on a Saturday).
The CFPB was formed in 2011 in response to the mortgage-related financial crisis of 2007-2008. It was born largely through efforts led by Warren, who at the time was still a Harvard law professor. Since its founding, the agency has returned over $21 billion to consumers, largely from predatory lenders. The CFPB is an independent government agency responsible for consumer protection in the financial sector. CFPB's jurisdiction includes banks, credit unions, securities firms, payday lenders, mortgage-servicing operations, foreclosure relief services, debt collectors, for-profit colleges and other financial companies.
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