CFPB Staffing, Fines up in Fiscal 2015 (Dec. 8, 2015)
The CFPB has issued its financial report for the 2015 fiscal year, ended Sept. 30, offering a glimpse into the operating expenses, staffing levels and fines imposed by the financial watchdog. The number of CFPB employees grew to 1,529 in 2015, from 1,443 the previous fiscal year, the report said. Forty-five percent of all bureau employees were in its Supervision, Enforcement and Fair Lending Division as of the end of fiscal year 2015—the same percentage as 2014. Funding for the CFPB—comprised of transfers from the Federal Reserve—decreased to $485 million in 2015, from $534 million in 2014. While the overall staffing and funding figures remained relatively steady over the past year, both have increased significantly from 2011—the CFPB’s founding year—when the agency employed 663 employees and received $162 million in transfers from the Fed. Despite that growth in dollars and manpower, the CFPB said in its latest financial report that it remains “below the steady-state employment levels and funding it estimates it will need to achieve the mission and responsibilities mandated by Congress in the Dodd-Frank Act.”
The CFPB’s civil penalty fund contained $136.6 million available for future allocation to financially harmed consumers and/or financial education. The agency collected civil penalties totaling $183.1 million from 37 cases in fiscal year 2015—a substantial increase from the $77.5 million collected in 2014. Overall, the agency resolved 56 cases against corporate or individual entities through litigation, settlement, issuance of default judgment or other means, according to the report.
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