Republican Senators Re-Introduce the “Repeal CFPB Act,” Prior Versions Failed to Get Committee Vote

On May 6, 2019, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) re-introduced the “Repeal CFPB Act,” S. 1335, which aims to abolish the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The bill is short and sweet, containing only one sentence in the substantive portion stating, “The Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 is repealed, and the provisions of law amended or repealed by that Act are restored or revived as if the Act had not been enacted.”

In a joint press release, the bill’s sponsor and co-sponsor offer their criticisms of the CFPB as the reasoning behind the bill. Senator Cruz states, “[the CFPB] does little to protect consumers and was created during the Obama administration to enforce burdensome regulations which have stunted economic growth and negatively impacted small businesses and consumers.” Senators Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Ben Sasse (R-NE), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) criticize the CFPB’s lack of oversight.

According to govtrack.us, the bill is unlikely to make it past committee review. The two previous versions introduced by Sen. Cruz—one in 2015 and one in 2017—failed to receive a committee vote. The current bill has seven Republican co-sponsors and is currently awaiting a vote by the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, which is led by Sen. Crapo (R-ID), who is notably not one of the co-sponsors.