U.S. Chamber Issues 23 Recommendations for CFPB Reform

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, an organization representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses, issued a series of recommendations to reform the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The U.S. Chamber expressed concern that the CFPB was not properly balancing its mission of consumer protection and providing access to financial products and services.

The U.S. Chamber identified 6 different target areas for change: provide clear rules of the road; enforce the law fairly; educate consumers with accurate, data-driven information; commit to transparency; avoid regulatory duplication and burden; and structure the Bureau for long-term success. Within those 6 target areas, the U.S. Chamber made 23 recommendations. In particular, the organization pushed the CFPB to end “rulemaking by enforcement” and provide companies with fair notice of legal requirements.

Another recommendation asks the CFPB to transition to a multi-member commission, ending the agency’s single independent director structure. Even though a federal circuit court found the CFPB’s structure valid and constitutional earlier this year, a bipartisan coalition in the House recently introduced a bill to establish a 5 member commission to oversee the consumer agency.

The U.S. Chamber report comes at a time in which the CFPB is asking the public to comment on nearly every facet of the agency’s operations. The organization’s CEO, Thomas Donohue, has been a frequent critic of what he feels is federal bureaucracy and politics getting in the way of economic growth and business development in America.