CFA and SBPC Detail 38 Enforcement Actions Abandoned by CFPB Leadership
February 20, 2025 | WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a memo released today, Consumer Federation of America (CFA) and Student Borrower Protection Center (SBPC) memorialized the full sweep of 38 pending CFPB enforcement actions as of the date of publication, including two cases against predatory lenders that cheated military families. This memo also includes a list of three pending actions to enforce compliance with mandatory civil investigative demands from the Bureau to obtain more information about whether these companies have violated the law. According to a “stop work” order issued by Trump-appointed Acting CFPB Director Russ Vought, all law enforcement activity at the CFPB was halted nearly two weeks ago. By failing to fairly and uniformly enforce federal consumer financial law, the CFPB is directly in violation of its Congressional mandate.
A copy of the full memo is available here: https://consumerfed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2.19.25-CFPB-Pending-Enforcement-Actions-1.pdf
“Once again, President Trump shows that he has no interest in protecting the pocketbooks of everyday Americans. Letting these enforcement actions linger on the vine is corruption pure and simple,” said SBPC Deputy Executive Director Persis Yu. “These enforcement actions are critical to holding companies accountable when they have hurt working families. These actions provide safeguards for high-risk consumers, establish guardrails for the financial industry, and go after greedy corporate raiders.”
“Letting lawbreakers run rampant while Trump forces the Bureau to sit on its hands sends the message that the American public is open season for financial predators,” said CFA Director of Consumer Protection Erin Witte. “The CFPB’s pending cases allege egregious conduct that has harmed millions of people, including members of the military, workers, older Americans, car buyers, and victims of fraud. Using cheated consumers as pawns in a political ping-pong match is illegal and just plain wrong.”
Background
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is the nation’s top watchdog protecting Americans against predatory lenders and corporate fraudsters. Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have taken over the CFPB, including gaining access to sensitive data and confidential supervisory information that the CFPB gathers from companies in order to keep consumers safe. Acting CFPB Director Russell Vought—key architect of the right-wing Project 2025 playbook—also brought the oversight work of the consumer protection agency to a halt, closing the HQ offices and directing staff to stay home.
Created in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, Congress gave the explicit directives to establish offices and programming dedicated to protecting vulnerable consumers, issue regulations to govern particular industries, and ensure transparent access to information about consumer financial products. Since opening its doors, the CFPB has directly obtained over $21 billion in relief for over 205 million people from companies that illegally cheated consumers. This includes more than $5 billion in relief for Americans with student debt, and uncovering evidence that led to the U.S. Department of Education cancelling $188.8 billion of student debt for 5.3 million borrowers. The CFPB has been hard at work over the last decade and is broadly popular among both Democratic and Republican voters, and the agency has received support across many different sectors.
In addition to returning millions of hard-earned dollars back to the pockets of consumers, the CFPB has issued regulations that promote fairer and more competitive credit markets, and investigated hundreds of businesses that rip off members of the military, students, seniors, and everyday Americans.
Further Reading
SBPC and Consumer Federation of America (CFA) memo identifying 87 congressionally imposed mandates Director Vought is refusing to perform: Advocates Applaud Lawsuits Challenging Trump and Vought’s Corrupt and Unlawful Attempt to “Delete” Consumer Watchdog Agency, CFPB
SBPC press release on CFPB Student Loan Ombudsman firing: Trump, Vought, and Musk Team Up to Abandon Students and Borrowers, Illegally Fire Top Student Loan Industry Watchdog
CFA press release on CFPB workers ordered to stop working: CFA Statement in Response to Announcement That the CFPB Will Halt Supervisory Work
SBPC memo on Twitter/X payments: Twitter/X Payments: Public Corruption Poses Risks for Consumers and Competition
SBPC blog on Musk and DOGE illegal attempt to “delete” CFPB: Elon and DOGE Are Attempting To Illegally “Delete” the CFPB, Here Is Why This Matters To Student Loan Borrower
SBPC press release on CFPB Director Chopra’s firing: CFPB Director Chopra’s Firing Tops Oligarchs’ Wishlist, Foreshadows Swing in Consumer Agency Priorities to Benefit Big Banks and Billionaires
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About Student Borrower Protection Center
Student Borrower Protection Center (SBPC) is a nonprofit organization focused on eliminating the burden of student debt for millions of Americans. We engage in advocacy, policymaking, and litigation strategy to rein in industry abuses, protect borrowers’ rights, and advance racial and economic justice.
Learn more at protectborrowers.org or follow SBPC on Twitter @theSBPC.
About Consumer Federation of America
Consumer Federation of America is an association of non-profit consumer organizations that was established in 1968 to advance the consumer interest through research, advocacy, and education.
Learn more at consumerfed.org or follow CFA on Twitter at @ConsumerFed.