HFSC Ranking Member McHenry Pushes for Acting CFPB Director Uejio to Come Before Committee

Representative Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) wants Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Acting Director Dave Uejio to come before the committee for questioning by its members.

In a letter sent earlier this month to Committee Chair Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), McHenry wrote that “it is concerning the CFPB is conducting business as usual without a Senate-confirmed Director and without proper oversight.”

“Over the last six months, the CFPB has been led by Mr. Uejio, who is serving in an ‘acting’ capacity,” McHenry wrote. “Notwithstanding Mr. Uejio’s ‘acting’ status, he has taken a number of agency actions that would traditionally be reserved for a Senate-confirmed Director. These actions include issuing new rules, guidance, and policy statements; delaying the implementation date of multiple major rulemakings conducted through the APA under a Senate-confirmed Director; reversing and rescinding policy statements and guidance issued by a Senate-confirmed Director; and undertaking nine enforcement actions against financial services companies.”

Uejio was appointed Acting Director of the CFPB in January 2021 as President Biden took office. Biden also nominated Rohit Chopra to serve as the Bureau’s permanent Director; while the Senate Banking Committee held a confirmation hearing for Chopra in March, a confirmation vote by the full Senate has not yet been scheduled. Once Chopra is confirmed, however, Acting Director Uejio has been nominated to become an Assistant Secretary at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).