On January 4, 2012, President Barack Obama used a recess appointment to appoint Richard Cordray as the first director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
Like many implementations of the Dodd-Frank bill, the use of a recess appointment was controversial. Obama claimed the move was necessary to protect the public, while Republicans charged the appointment was unconstitutional. The Republicans in the Senate were using a procedural technicality to keep the Senate in session even though it wasn’t conducting any business to stop the president from making recess appointments.
While Congress will continue fighting, pointing fingers and threatening litigation, for many sectors in the financial services industry, including mortgage lending, this appointment ushers in a new era of federal regulation.
For more information, read DocuTech founder and president Ty Jenkins article in the March issue of HousingWire’s HWFocus, which outlines several areas mortgage lenders will have to prepare for the new sheriff Cordray.