State Attorneys General, CFPB + FTC

Subscribe to State Attorneys General, CFPB + FTC via RSS

In December 2023, we blogged about lawsuits filed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and later the State of Texas against Colony Ridge and related entities. The complaints alleged that Colony Ridge targeted Hispanic borrowers with deceptive Spanish‑language marketing, sold largely undeveloped and flood‑prone land, and engaged in predatory financing by steering borrowers into high‑rate, seller‑financed mortgage loans with extremely high foreclosure rates.

In this episode of Moving the Metal, hosts Brooke Conkle and Chris Capurso are joined by Troutman colleagues Chris Carlson and Nam Kang from the firm’s RISE Practice Group to unpack what “Trump 2.0” really means for dealers and auto finance companies. With the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and other federal regulators pulling back, the group explains how state attorneys general (AGs) and state financial regulators are rapidly filling the void — often led by former CFPB staff now embedded in state offices — and why that creates a complex patchwork of unfair or deceptive acts or practices standards and enforcement approaches across 50 states. They discuss hot-button themes like affordability, junk fees, mini-CFPBs, and the growing role of state working groups, as well as how state AGs are leveraging prior CFPB theories, the California CARS rule, and copy‑and‑paste complaints.

On January 12, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) issued a second invitation for comments on potential regulations under the California Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCFPL) that would require registration and reporting by firms engaged in consumer reporting and related data activities. Comments are due by February 26.

On January 12, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and U.S. Department of Justice formally withdrew their October 2023 joint statement on creditors’ consideration of immigration status under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). As we previewed in our December 23, 2025 blog post (available here), the agencies state that the CFPB’s prior statement may have created the misimpression that ECOA or Regulation B impose additional limits on the consideration of immigration or citizenship status beyond the existing regulatory text. The agencies also state that additional guidance on this topic goes beyond Regulation B, so it is unnecessary and appropriate for rescission.

New York has adopted new regulations, 3 NYCRR Part 120, that will extend New York’s Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) obligations to certain nonbank mortgage lenders operating in the state. Effective July 7, 2026, the rule will require New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS)‑licensed non‑depository mortgage bankers that have originated 200 or more New York State mortgage loans in the prior calendar year to demonstrate that they are providing fair and equitable access to home loans, especially for low‑ and moderate‑income New Yorkers.

On January 9, the defendants in National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) v. Vought filed a notice and exhibit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia confirming that the Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) has now requested funding from the Federal Reserve Board (Federal Reserve), as required by Judge Amy Berman Jackson’s December 30, 2025 order.

On December 12, Wisconsin legislators introduced Senate Bill 759 (SB 759), which would substantially shift Wisconsin’s approach to consumer lending. The bill would:

  • Impose a 36% annual percentage rate (APR) cap on consumer loans made by licensed lenders;
  • Adopt predominant economic interest and totality of the circumstances tests that expand which entities “make” loans under the law and are subject to licensing;
  • Add broad anti‑evasion language; and
  • Require new, detailed reporting from licensed lenders to the Division of Banking within the Department of Financial Institutions (DFI).

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released a new market “data spotlight” on Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) that uses actual transaction data from six large providers of “pay-in-four” BNPL loans. The report paints a picture of growing adoption paired with improving credit performance: late fees fell and charge-off rates declined in 2023, even as the number of loans and users rose.

As we discussed in our prior post on National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau), on August 15 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia issued a decision vacating the district court’s preliminary injunction, which had previously restricted the CFPB’s actions to halt the Bureau’s operations and terminate its employees. The court of appeals held that most of the employees’ claims belonged in the Civil Service Reform Act regime and that the remaining claims did not target reviewable final agency action or equitable claims.

On December 11, the White House issued an Executive Order (EO) titled Ensuring a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence (AI). The EO states a federal policy to sustain and enhance U.S. AI leadership through a minimally burdensome national policy framework and to limit conflicting state requirements. It directs rapid actions by multiple federal entities to evaluate, challenge, or preempt state AI laws viewed as inconsistent with that policy and to use federal funding and standard-setting to influence state approaches.