Dodd-Frank Act - Title X: Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection

Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection will be established which shall regulate the offering and provision of consumer financial products or services under the Federal consumer financial laws. The Bureau is an Executive agency

Powers of the Bureau: The Bureau is authorized to establish the general policies of the Bureau with respect to all executive and administrative functions, including:

  • the establishment of rules for conducting the general business of the Bureau, in a manner not inconsistent with this title
  • to bind the Bureau and enter into contracts
  • directing the establishment and maintenance of divisions or other offices within the Bureau, in order to carry out the responsibilities under the Federal consumer financial laws, and to satisfy the requirements of other applicable law;
  • to coordinate and oversee the operation of all administrative, enforcement, and research activities of the Bureau;
  • to adopt and use a seal;
  • to determine the character of and the necessity for the obligations and expenditures of the Bureau;
  • the appointment and supervision of personnel employed by the Bureau;
  • the distribution of business among personnel appointed and supervised by the Director and among administrative units of the Bureau;
  • the use and expenditure of funds;
  • implementing the Federal consumer financial laws through rules, orders, guidance, interpretations, statements of policy, examinations, and enforcement actions performing such other functions as may be collecting and tracking complaints.
  • authorized or required by law.

Research: The Director shall establish a unit whose functions shall include researching, analyzing, and reporting on:

  1. developments in markets for consumer financial products or services, including market areas of alternative consumer financial products or services with high growth rates and areas of risk to consumers;
  2. access to fair and affordable credit for traditionally underserved communities;
  3. consumer awareness, understanding, and use of disclosures and communications regarding consumer financial products or services;
  4. consumer awareness and understanding of costs, risks, and benefits of consumer financial products or services;
  5. consumer behavior with respect to consumer financial products or services, including performance on mortgage loans; and
  6. experiences of traditionally underserved consumers, including un-banked and under-banked consumers.
  7. whose functions shall include providing information, guidance, and technical assistance regarding the offering and provision of consumer financial products or services to traditionally underserved consumers and communities.

The Director shall establish a unit whose functions shall include establishing a single, toll free

telephone number, a website, and a database or utilizing an existing database to facilitate the centralized collection of, monitoring of, and response to consumer complaints regarding consumer financial products or services. The Director shall coordinate with the Federal Trade Commission or other Federal agencies to route complaints to such agencies, where appropriate.

Routing calls to states: To the extent practicable, State agencies may receive appropriate complaints from the systems established:

  • the State agency system has the functional capacity to receive calls or electronic reports routed
  • by the Bureau systems;
  • the State agency has satisfied any conditions of participation in the system that the Bureau may
  • establish, including treatment of personally identifiable information and sharing of information on complaint resolution or related compliance procedures and resources; and
  • participation by the State agency includes measures necessary to provide for protection of personally
  • identifiable information that conform to the standards for protection of the confidentiality of personally
  • identifiable information and for data integrity and security that apply to the Federal agencies.

This content is for paid members only.

Join our membership for lifelong unlimited access to all our data science learning content and resources.