Consumers Share Views About CFPB Oversight, Structure

A recent poll shows that since the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was established in 2011, consumers don’t feel it has improved their lives but some believe the regulator should have more oversight. 

Researchers from the U.S. Consumer Coalition and Zogby Analytics Poll asked consumers about their thoughts on CFPB oversight and its leadership structure.

Thirty-percent said they feel that the CFPB should operate without Congressional oversight even if "it is designed to protect consumers by enacting federal regulations that prevent consumers from making bad decisions."

Overall consumer attitude toward the CFPB indicates one in three consumers (31%) responded that the CFPB deserves a positive rating and 14% have negative views. Thirty-two percent of consumers polled were not familiar enough with the CFPB to provide a rating.

Respondents indicated - by a factor of 39% to 26% - that they prefer a CFPB structure that includes a bipartisan panel that’s monitored and held accountable to an elected body of officials such as Congress. The poll includes input from 3,225 "likely voters” and 3,604 adults.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Accountability Act of 2015 would require that the CFPB be subject to the congressional appropriations process. The legislation has gained support from ACA International, the largest association representing collection agencies, and was referred to the Senate Banking Committee in June.