Republicans Propose Bipartisan Commission to Run the CFPB

Members of the House Financial Services Committee listened to testimony from five witnesses, including the president/CEO of Logix Federal Credit Union, during a two-hour hearing that introduced several legislative proposals calling for not only reforming the CFPB, but creating a bipartisan commission to run the Bureau – effectively eliminating the director position.

Wednesday’s Republican-led hearing titled “A New Era for the CFPB: Balancing Power and Reprioritizing Consumer Protections” focused on the “regulatory overreach” of the CFPB and pushed efforts to radically change the Bureau’s structure and accountability.

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Among the 10 legislative proposals submitted during the hearing, Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) proposed to “restructure the CFPB to a bipartisan commission” and place the Bureau under the appropriations process.

The 10 legislative proposals included the following:

CFPB Inspector General Act of 2025: Establishes an independent Inspector General (IG) for the CFPB, separate from the Federal Reserve's IG, to improve oversight and accountability of the Bureau’s operations.
CFPB-IG Reform Act: Requires the CFPB IG to be appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, ensuring independence from the agency it oversees.
CFPB Transparency and Accountability Reform Act: Subjects the CFPB to the congressional appropriations process by eliminating its current independent funding from the Federal Reserve.
Taking Account of Bureaucrats’ Spending (TABS) Act: Amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act to require all CFPB funding to be explicitly approved by Congress, providing direct fiscal oversight.
Consumer Financial Protection Commission Act: Replaces the CFPB’s single director structure with a five-member bipartisan commission to enhance stability, transparency and reduce political influence.
CFPB Whistleblower Protection Act: Enhances protections for whistleblowers within the CFPB, encouraging accountability and internal transparency.
CFPB Office of Economic Analysis Act: Creates an internal Office of Economic Analysis within the CFPB to improve cost-benefit analysis of proposed rules and ensure data-driven policymaking.
Bureau Advisory Opinion Act: Requires the CFPB to issue binding advisory opinions upon request, providing regulatory clarity for businesses and institutions.
Consumer Financial Protection Guidance Clarity Act: Makes CFPB guidance documents legally nonbinding unless adopted through a formal rulemaking process, increasing transparency in enforcement.
Reforming Unlawful and Needless Regulations (RUN) Act: Establishes a process for independent review of CFPB regulations, allowing stakeholders to petition for the removal of overly burdensome or outdated rules.

In her testimony before the House Financial Services Committee, Ana Fonseca, president/CEO of the Valencia, Calif.-based Logix Federal Credit Union ($9.7 billion in assets, 252,513 members), who testified on behalf of America's Credit Unions, called for balanced and appropriately tailored oversight from the CFPB, emphasizing that credit unions differ significantly from large, for-profit financial institutions.

“We support the CFPB’s mission of protecting consumers,” Fonseca stated. “However, the Bureau must be mindful that the credit union model is fundamentally different from other financial institutions.” She pointed out that credit unions are not-for-profit, member-owned cooperatives whose primary objective is serving their members, not maximizing shareholder returns.

Fonseca expressed concern that CFPB regulations, while well-intentioned, can impose unnecessary burdens on credit unions, potentially limiting their ability to provide affordable services to underserved communities. She called for a more customized regulatory approach that considers the size, scope and mission of institutions like Logix.

“Applying one-size-fits-all rules to credit unions undermines our ability to innovate and meet the needs of our members,” she told lawmakers. Fonseca encouraged the CFPB to strengthen dialogue with credit unions and adjust its rulemaking process to avoid unintended consequences for member-focused institutions.

Her comments echoed a broader industry call for thoughtful oversight that preserves consumer protection while enabling credit unions to thrive.

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Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.