Banking and Finance Law Daily Wrap Up, CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU—CFPB certifies full compliance with settlement agreement in suit involving consumer law taskforce, (Mar 29, 2022)

By Nadine E. Roddy, J.D.

The CFPB’s Final Status Report detailed over 20 measures taken to remedy the Board’s stipulated violations of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA).

In December 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and two consumer advocacy groups—the National Association of Consumer Advocates and the United States Public Interest Research Group—entered into a Settlement Agreement and Order to resolve all claims raised by the consumer groups over the creation and operation of the CFPB’s “Taskforce on Federal Consumer Financial Law.” The U.S. District Court in Massachusetts entered and approved the Settlement Agreement on December 6, 2021 (see Banking and Finance Law Daily, Jan. 18, 2022).

Background. In the December Agreement, the CFPB stipulated that the Taskforce was subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), that its creation and operations were in violation of the FACA, and that the Taskforce’s two-volume January 2021 Final Report was not produced by a FACA-compliant advisory committee. In addition, the CFPB agreed to the following:

1. Release of records. Release all Taskforce records, in compliance with FACA requirements, to the public, on a rolling basis, beginning Jan. 17, 2022, with complete production by March 22, 2022.

2. Report disclaimer. Amend both Volume I and Volume II of the Taskforce’s report to include a disclaimer specifying that the CFPB violated FACA in the production of the report.

3. Taskforce webpage. The CFPB was required to move the Taskforce webpage to its Advisory Committees Page, where other advisory committees are housed, by Jan. 17, 2022.

4. Press release. The CFPB had to issue a press release by Jan. 17, 2022, notifying the public of the settlement of the action.

5. Certification of Compliance. Finally, the CFPB certified to the court and the plaintiffs its compliance with the stipulation and order by providing status reports, beginning Jan. 31, 2022, and continuing every other month, on the last business day, until the CFPB has achieved full compliance.

Complied in full. On March 28, 2022, the CFPB filed its Final Status Report, in which it certified to the court and the consumer groups that it had complied in full with the terms of the Agreement, as listed above. The Report also detailed the measures taken by the Board as required by the Agreement.

Companies: National Association of Consumer Advocates; United States Public Interest Research Group

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