Consumers First Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. STEIL. Madam Chair, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has a duty to the American people.

Congress established the Bureau almost a decade ago to protect consumers from abuse and empower people to make good financial choices, regardless of who the President is. That is a very important responsibility. With that in mind, Chairwoman Waters is right to call attention to the governance of the CFPB.

CFPB actions and interpretations can vary significantly from one administration to another, and because the CFPB is unaccountable, there isn't much Congress can do about it. In fact, the Bureau was built to be unaccountable and unresponsive, and this has given its Directors free rein to take actions that many of us do not support.

There are many ideas on both sides of the aisle on how best to reform the CFPB, and this is something Congress should consider soon.

My amendment sets aside the politically charged findings in the bill and takes us one step closer to transparency and accountability.

Some of these findings target former Acting Director Mick Mulvaney by name. One disparages Mulvaney by referencing a political article that includes a critical quote from an anonymous source. Another criticizes him for rearranging the initials of the CFPB. Let me repeat that: Another criticizes him for rearranging the initials of the CFPB. Only in Washington.

My amendment strikes all of this unhelpful rhetoric and replaces it with a requirement that the Comptroller General conduct an independent study focused on three key questions: One, is the CFPB meeting its obligations efficiently and effectively? Two, how prevalent are discriminatory lending practices? Three, are the workplace rights of CFPB staff respected?

The Comptroller General's findings can then help to inform our continued efforts to oversee and reform the Bureau to make it work better for all Americans.

Protecting consumers, examining the prevalence of discrimination, and protecting workplace rights should not be controversial. Ensuring effectiveness and transparent governance should not be a source of partisan disagreement.

I understand that the chairwoman is unhappy with the way the CFPB is governed. So am I. Anyone who has read about the past abuses at this unaccountable agency should have concerns about the structure that enables this bad behavior to exist in the first place.

Today's amendment recognizes that Congress has a responsibility to ensure that the Bureau is fulfilling its mission, and that independent audit, not political rhetoric, is the best way to move toward this goal.

The American people deserve an unbiased look at what the Bureau does right and what it does wrong so we can find common ground on the best way to protect consumers.

I urge my colleagues to support the amendment.

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Mr. STEIL. Madam Chair, I think the most important part here is that the findings are the political rhetoric that we are looking to remove. This town has far too much political rhetoric.

I am willing to work with my colleague to make this unaccountable entity accountable to Congress in the first place. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this amendment.

Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. STEIL. Madam Speaker, this is the final amendment to the bill. It will not kill the bill or send it back to committee. If adopted, the bill will immediately proceed to final passage, as amended.

Madam Speaker, the Dodd-Frank Act created the Consumer Financial Civil Penalty Fund, into which the Bureau deposits civil penalties it collects from wrongdoers.

Civil penalties should be used exclusively to make victims of financial consumer crimes whole. We should track down actual victims of fraud. However, current law allows the Bureau to use this account as a slush fund.

We should give the money back to the victims.

This motion would put an end to the CFPB slush fund. This motion requires the CFPB to do the right thing: Give the money to the victims.

The CFPB's ability to take away penalty funds and use them in unaccountable ways is unparalleled among financial regulators.

Where does this money go?

Both the Government Accountability Office and the Federal Reserve's Inspector General, which oversees the CFPB, found that the CFPB lacks internal procedures. The CFPB lacks accountability. The CFPB lacks transparency.

Where does this money go?

Let's put an end to the slush fund at the Bureau. Let's redirect where this money belongs. Let's give the money to the victims.

I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this motion to recommit.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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