CFPB Strengthens Enforcement Efforts by States

Recently, the CFPB issued an interpretive rule providing further clarity concerning the scope of State enforcement under Section 1042 of the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA).  Specifically, the CFPB issued three interpretations: (1) States are permitted to enforce any provision of the CFPA, including provisions that make it unlawful for covered persons or service providers to violate federal consumer financial laws; (2) limitations on the CFPB’s enforcement authority do not constrain enforcement authority of the States; and (3) States are not prohibited from bringing concurrent enforcement actions with the CFPB.

The CFPB expressed that these interpretations are part of the CFPB’s expansion of efforts to support state enforcement activity and that the CFPB is considering other steps to promote state enforcement of federal consumer financial protection laws.