Million Dollar Baby: The Consumer Financial Protection Agency Act of 2009

By: Melanie Hibbs Brody, Steven M. Kaplan, David L. Beam, Stephanie C. Robinson

With the power to impose penalties of up to $1 million per day, the recently proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency (“CFPA” or “Agency”)—an independent agency with the sole mission of protecting consumers—is the subject of much attention. After Congress returned from the Independence Day holiday, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank introduced House Bill 3126—entitled Consumer Financial Protection Agency Act of 2009 (“bill” or “Act”). The bill mirrors draft legislation that the Obama Administration delivered to the Hill the previous week, with only a few substantive changes, and is based on the recommendations the Administration set forth in its financial regulatory reform package issued earlier this year to establish the Agency.

To read the complete alert online, click here.