A labor union has initiated legal action against Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) acting director Russell Vought after he instructed staff to suspend much of the agency’s operations.
On Saturday, just days after replacing ousted director Rohit Chopra, Vought communicated via email to CFPB employees, directing them to halt all supervisory and examination activities, stakeholder engagement, and to pause all ongoing investigations.
The National Treasury Employees Union responded promptly with a lawsuit seeking a judicial order to block Vought’s directives. The filing argues that “CFPB employees have been placed in questionable status as they have been directed not to work but have not been formally placed on any authorized type of leave.” It also expresses concern that these initial directives could signal a purge of the CFPB’s workforce, preventing the agency from fulfilling its statutory mission.
Additionally, the union has filed a separate lawsuit to prevent Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency from accessing employee information.
On Friday, Musk posted “CFPB RIP” accompanied by a tombstone emoji on X, indicating his plans to introduce a payments service later this year and asserting that the platform will eventually provide various financial services. In response to this potential shift, the CFPB had finalized a rule last year to oversee major tech companies offering digital payment apps and wallets.
According to the lawsuit, three staff members associated with Dogecoin were added to the bureau’s internal communication system, with Vought instructing employees to grant them “access to all non-classified CFPB systems.” The lawsuit contends that “these employees face irreparable harm to their privacy interests if their employee information is improperly accessed and/or disseminated by individuals associated with Doge,” highlighting the risks of unauthorized disclosure of personnel information.
Over the weekend, Vought announced on X that he had notified the Federal Reserve that the CFPB would not be requesting its next draw of unappropriated funding, stating it was not “reasonably necessary” to carry out its duties. The CFPB has secured over $21 billion in various forms of consumer relief from firms. Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized Vought’s orders, claiming they give “big banks and giant corporations the green light to scam families.”