On April 17, more than 1,500 employees of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) received reduction-in-force notices, representing more than 90 percent of the agency’s staff. If these layoffs take effect, they would leave the agency with just 200 remaining employees, who would be unlikely to efficiently fulfill the agency’s mandate to protect consumers and enforce federal consumer financial laws.
Created in response to the 2008 financial crisis and ensuing Great Recession, the CFPB protects consumers in every state and congressional district. Part of its mission includes collecting, investigating, and responding to consumer complaints regarding financial products. Consumers submit complaints to the CFPB, the agency liaises with the companies in question, and the companies communicate with the consumers and remedy the situation as needed. The CFPB publishes the complaints and their outcomes in the Consumer Complaint Database (without information that directly identifies the consumer).
Before the creation of the CFPB, no federal agency was primarily focused on consumer financial protection. Dismantling the CFPB would mean consumers have little recourse when faced with issues such as credit card fraud, errors on credit reports, and issues with their checking and savings accounts, which could jeopardize their financial health and undermine their relationship with financial service providers.
Who does the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau help?
Consumers have filed approximately 4.8 million complaints with the CFPB since January 2023. Nearly 90 percent of these complaints have been answered, and 99 percent received a timely response (generally within 15 days).
Complaint volume varies nationwide, but consumers in every state and congressional district have used the CFPB’s complaint system. Florida and Texas lead the nation, with approximately 679,000 and 629,000 complaints. Among congressional districts, Georgia’s 13th district tops the list with nearly 65,000 complaints, followed closely by Florida’s 24th district (64,772) and Pennsylvania’s 3rd district (57,616).
Most complaints—about 84 percent—pertain to credit reporting, but consumers also registered complaints about debt collection (5.1 percent) and issues with checking or savings accounts (2.5 percent). The most common issues reported involve incorrect information on credit reports (41 percent), the improper use of credit reports (25 percent), and dissatisfaction with a company’s investigation into an existing problem (14 percent).
“They are attempting to collect money I don't owe. The original amount was far less.”
— A complaint submitted by a consumer from Texas in April 2025, resolved with nonmonetary relief to the customer.
In particular, service members and older adults rely on the CFPB’s complaint system. Approximately 176,000 complaints were submitted by service members (97 percent of which have been answered) and about 68,000 complaints were submitted by Americans ages 62 or older (94 percent of which have been answered). These groups often face unique financial challenges, such as frequent relocations and health decline.
“I’m getting $29.00 overdraft fees on my account even though I’m not spending anything and I have no subscriptions so there is no reason they should be taking money out of my account. It’s not the first time this has happened with this company.”
— A complaint submitted by a service member from Texas in December 2024, case closed with monetary relief to the consumer.
Addressing consumer complaints requires sufficient resources
If the CFPB is expected to “reduce tangible harm to consumers,” the agency must have adequate staff and resources to maintain a system where millions of complaints are submitted by consumers across the United States. If reduced to just 200 employees and a consumer response team of just 16 people (PDF), it is unlikely the CFPB will be able to efficiently fulfill its mandate. As a result, consumers in every state and congressional district will be more susceptible to financial harm and predatory practices.
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