Washington, D.C. (June 29, 2020) – NFIB commends the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Seila Law LLC, v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau today by ruling the CFPB is unconstitutional in its current form. The U.S. Supreme Court found unconstitutional the CFPB structure with an unchecked, single unaccountable director.
“Small businesses and all Americans are winners today with this Supreme Court decision that ensures federal agencies must be structured in a way that is accountable to the people,” said Karen Harned, Executive Director of the NFIB Small Business Legal Center. “The fact that even the President of the United States couldn’t remove CFPB’s director from office gave the position too much power.”
NFIB filed an amicus brief in the case, arguing that the CFPB is unconstitutional in its current form. NFIB argues the CFPB does not include the types of structural protections that other independent agencies have had, and this significantly undermines individual liberty in contravention of the Constitution. The director of the CFPB cannot be fired by the president. And unlike other independent agencies, the CFPB does not require a certain number of seats to be filled by individuals from various parties to moderate the agencies’ conduct.
The NFIB Small Business Legal Center protects the rights of small business owners in the nation’s courts. NFIB is currently active in more than 40 cases in federal and state courts across the country and in the U.S. Supreme Court.
