The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, has begun the process of dismantling the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). This agency is independently funded through the Federal Reserve, but its director has the authority to determine its budget, which means it could be reduced to zero. Only a handful of positions, such as that of deputy director, are established by law at the CFPB.
On Friday, three members of the DOGE team, Christopher Young, Nikhil Rajpal, and Gavin Kliger, arrived at the CFPB headquarters in Washington, according to the NTEU 335 union of agency employees. Musk has announced the disappearance of the CFPB as part of his measures to dissolve federal entities and cut costs.
Scott Bessent, Secretary of the Treasury and interim director of the CFPB since Rohit Chopra was fired by Trump, has prohibited external communications and suspended key operations of the agency. Despite requests for comments, Young, Rajpal, and Kliger have not responded.
Musk's team has also cut funding to USAID projects and laid off a large portion of the agency's staff. Although Democrats and unions have protested and filed lawsuits against DOGE's actions at USAID, the unique funding structure of the CFPB legally isolates it from such pressures. The Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 established the CFPB and granted its director broad powers to lead the agency.
