FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, October 11, 2016
Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430, njacobs@bettermarkets.com
Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued the following statement on the decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruling against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
“The Court decision today on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was very narrow, but it was not wise. The limited ruling merely expanded the President’s power to remove the head of the CFPB for any reason, not just for cause as passed in the Dodd-Frank law, as is the case with other executive agencies.
“When drafting the law, Congress and President Obama knew that the CFPB would be a priority target for the financial industry to kill because it would be a powerful consumer watchdog. That is why the law carefully struck a balance between protecting the consumer bureau from politics and the industry’s political allies while insuring it was accountable and had effective oversight. That is also why, in addition to transparency, oversight and accountability, it is an independent executive bureau with independent funding and a leader that can only be removed for cause, until the court decision.
“The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is one of the most necessary and successful agencies ever created. In just a few years since it was created, it has returned more than $11 billion to more than 27 million Americans ripped off by financial firms. After more than a decade of being victimized by financial predators, that is great news for America’s financial consumers. Finally, there is an effective cop on the Wall Street beat, but that’s also why financial firms hate the agency and have fought relentlessly to kill it. This misguided and needless decision will only embolden those critics who will not be satisfied until the agency is killed or crippled.”
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Better Markets is a non-profit, non-partisan, and independent organization founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to promote the public interest in the financial markets, support the financial reform of Wall Street and make our financial system work for all Americans again. Better Markets works with allies – including many in finance – to promote pro-market, pro-business and pro-growth policies that help build a stronger, safer financial system that protects and promotes Americans’ jobs, savings, retirements and more. To learn more, visit www.bettermarkets.com.
