REPORT: CFPB Returned $63M Harmed Texas Consumers, Yet U.S. Reps. Roger Williams & Pete Sessions Want to Shut It Down

WASHINGTON, DC – A new report from government watchdog Accountable.US shows much stolen money was returned by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s ‘Civil Penalty Fund for consumers in 10 states including Texas who fell victim to fraudulent or predatory financial industry behavior. In Texas alone, the CFPB returned over $63 million in funds to 98,558 harmed Texans between 2012 and 2022. Meanwhile, the state is home to among the most aggressive opponents of the CFPB in Congress, Reps. Williams and Sessions. These Republican lawmakers have collectively taken over $7 million from the financial industry that has spent tens of millions of dollars lobbying to weaken the CFPB since its inception. The industry’s goal: leave everyday families vulnerable to tricks, debt traps, discrimination, and outright scams from the likes of predatory lenders and greedy big banks.

“Republicans in Congress should be celebrating the fact the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has recouped billions of dollars for families who’ve been ripped off by bad actors in the financial industry,” said Liz Zelnick, Director of Accountable.US’ Economic Security & Corporate Power. “Instead, many Republicans like Reps. Williams and Sessions are rooting for efforts to defund and defang the nation’s top consumer advocate after they’ve taken millions of dollars from big banks and predatory lenders that want few, if any, consumer protections in place. Reps. Williams and Sessions should answer to their constituents why they’d rather represent their industry donors at the expense of everyday families.”

Consumer Protections In Jeopardy: Accountable.US’ analysis comes as the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on October 3rd on the lawsuit brought by the predatory payday loan industry that seeks to gut the CFPB by striking down its independent funding structure and leaving it beholden to the political whims of Congress. Reps. Williams and Sessions recently filed an amicus brief in support of the payday loan industry’s lawsuit against the CFPB. With so many critics of the CFPB in the Republican House Majority that frequently do the bidding of their major financial industry donors, there is little doubt these lawmakers would defund the agency the first chance they got. That is why this lawsuit represents the most significant threat to consumer protections in U.S. history.

Over August Recess, Will These Lawmakers Answer Why They Want to Stop CFPB’s Success Returning Ill-Gotten Money to the Harmed Families They Represent? Accountable.US’ report release also coincides with a ‘#DefendCFPB’ week-of-action that several consumer advocate groups are taking part in, including press events in at least a dozen places across the country with elected leaders. As part of the effort, Accountable.US is launching digital graphics across platforms, illustrating just how far the CFPB’s Congressional foes will go to gut the agency, even as it returns millions to consumers in their states.

Click below to learn more from Accountable.US about the foes of the CFPB: