Washington, D.C – Yesterday, the Solicitor General filed its brief in support of the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) before the Supreme Court. The case, CFSA vs. CFPB, is on appeal from the 5^th Circuit, which found that the CFPB’s funding mechanism is unconstitutional. A separate 2^nd Circuit decision upheld the CFPB’s funding mechanism and rejected the 5^th circuit’s ruling, thereby creating a circuit split that the Supreme Court will resolve this fall.

“By highlighting the long history of Congressional flexibility to adopt different agency funding mechanisms, the Solicitor General confirms that the 5^th Circuit’s ruling was both unprecedented and radical,” said Rachel Gittleman, Financial Services Outreach Manager with Consumer Federation of America. “Like many other agencies and programs throughout our federal government, Congress provided the CFPB with a consistent funding stream and sufficient independence to safeguard its ability to ensure the financial marketplace is equitable, fair, transparent, and competitive for all American consumers. The Supreme Court should reject and reverse the 5^th Circuit decision for the sake of consumers and the economy.”