WASHINGTON – Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa today filed an amendment to the budget resolution before the Senate that would provide the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau with its own independent inspector general.
“Inspectors general serve as watchdogs, keeping an eye on the executive branch for Congress and the American people,” Grassley said. “Their mission includes everything from fighting waste and fraud to making sure agencies operate effectively and efficiently. Because this agency is housed within and predominantly funded by the Federal Reserve, there is little independent oversight of it. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and an inspector general would help create accountability, oversight and transparency in this new government bureau.”
Grassley’s amendment is co-sponsored by Sen. Tom Coburn. The amendment text is available here.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was created through the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, enacted in 2010. The bureau has been controversial because it has broad powers to regulate mortgage firms, credit card companies, and other entities that provide consumer credit, and it was created without an inspector general to provide oversight of its activities.
Grassley is a long-time advocate for inspectors general.