MOAA and 15 partner military and veteran services organizations asked a top federal administrator to reestablish key protections for military family finances, including programs which have resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in financial relief for those in uniform.

A Feb. 19 letter from MOAA and its allies to Russell Vought, head of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) who is also serving as the acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), asked him to restart Military Lending Act (MLA) supervisory examinations and allow the bureau’s Office of Servicemember Affairs to return to its work.

[TAKE ACTION: Urge Your Lawmakers to Resume CFPB Operations for Servicemembers]

The CFPB is a financial watchdog that works to protect “consumers from unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices and take action against companies that break the law.” A Feb. 10 directive from Vought asked all CFPB workers to “not perform any work tasks,” but the bureau’s actions since its 2011 founding have led to over a billion dollars in relief to consumers.

Work to enforce the MLA – protecting those in uniform from predatory lenders who seek to charge more than 36% interest on certain financial products – has resulted in more than $183 million of restitution. The CFBP also has aided in policing Servicemember Civil Relief Act (SCRA) violations, providing $481 million in monetary relief for 147,000 servicemembers. Two cases against FirstCash and MoneyLion are in court, and given the bureau’s current state, it is unclear whether the servicemembers who were allegedly harmed will receive justice. If the rules go unenforced and any rulebreakers go unpunished, it is likely more violations will occur.

MOAA has testified to the value for the uniformed services community – servicemembers are impacted when the CFPB is unable to carry out its responsibilities. 

Readiness and Security

The CFPB also manages a database that allows consumers to submit complaints to companies. Servicemembers have reported over 19,000 complaints to the database this year alone (through Feb. 18), with more than 11,000 complaints involving credit reporting challenges.

Given that most servicemembers are required to maintain a security clearance, fixing credit reporting inaccuracies is vital. “The financial readiness of service members and their families is a state in which the successful management of personal financial responsibilities supports a service member’s ability to perform his or her wartime responsibilities,” according to DoD’s Office of Financial Readiness.

With our nation facing threats all over the globe, a whole-of-government approach must be taken to ensure we are ready. While additional layoffs have been halted by a court order, the future of the CFPB is unclear.

The CFPB is a vital part of ensuring our servicemembers are ready to defend our country. Write your lawmakers and ask them to ensure the CFPB can do its job to protect those who protect us.