Senate Parliamentarian Blocks GOP Efforts to Cut CFPB Funding in Tax Bill
The Senate parliamentarian's ruling undermines GOP plans to reduce funding for the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, citing procedural violations and potential deficit increases.
Overview
- The Senate parliamentarian ruled against GOP plans to cut the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) funding in a tax bill.
- Republicans aimed to save $6.4 billion by reducing CFPB funding, but faced procedural setbacks.
- The Trump administration's stance on CFPB as government overreach has been challenged within the GOP's tax plan.
- Parliamentarian rulings are typically upheld, impacting the GOP's strategy regarding the CFPB.
- The ruling also indicated that the tax bill could increase deficits by $2.4 trillion and affect healthcare coverage for 10.9 million people.
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Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame the GOP's attempts to dismantle the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau as a significant setback, emphasizing procedural violations and the potential negative impact on public welfare. The tone suggests skepticism towards Republican motives, highlighting concerns over government overreach and the implications for healthcare and financial stability.
The bureau had been designed as a way to better protect Americans from financial fraud, but has been opposed by many GOP lawmakers since its inception.
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"…The findings by the Senate parliamentarian’s office, which is working overtime scrubbing Trump’s overall bill to ensure it aligns with the chamber’s strict “Byrd Rule” processes, signal a tough road ahead."
Associated Press·13d·FAQ
The Senate parliamentarian ruled that cutting CFPB funding is outside the scope of the budget reconciliation process because it involves public policy changes rather than changes in revenue or spending, which are the only changes allowed under reconciliation rules. Therefore, this provision is subject to a filibuster and requires 60 votes to pass, which Republicans are unlikely to achieve.
Republicans aimed to save $6.4 billion by reducing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding, which they viewed as wasteful spending, as part of their broader tax and spending reform efforts.
The ruling forces GOP lawmakers to revise their tax bill to remove or scale back CFPB funding cuts, as these cannot be passed by simple majority reconciliation. It maintains the CFPB's funding and prevents the bill from triggering a filibuster. This is a setback for GOP efforts to reduce the CFPB’s budget and limits their ability to cut federal spending through reconciliation.
The parliamentarian ruled that several other GOP proposals, including slashing Federal Reserve employees' pay, cutting Treasury's Office of Financial Research, and dissolving the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, are also ineligible for inclusion in the budget reconciliation bill because they do not comply with reconciliation rules.
Consumer advocacy groups like Consumer Reports hailed the parliamentarian's ruling as a positive step, emphasizing the CFPB's critical role in protecting consumers from predatory financial practices. However, they also warned that political attacks on the CFPB will likely continue and noted that the current administration has already curtailed much of the bureau’s enforcement work.
History
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