WASHINGTON (UPDATED: 3/19/13, 10:30 A.M. ET)--The Senate Banking Committee has approved Richard Cordray's nomination to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by a 12 to 10 vote.

Cordray's nomination will now move on to the full U.S. Senate.

President Barack Obama appointed Cordray to the CFPB director position during a brief congressional recess in 2012, and Cordray's term as director would end this year if he is not confirmed.

Obama has nominated Cordray to maintain the CFPB director position, but Senate Republicans have consistently said they would block any CFPB nominee if certain structural changes were not made to the agency.

House and Senate Republicans have supported replacing the CFPB director's position with a five-member panel of leadership. Legislation that would create such a panel (S. 205) has been introduced in the Senate. CUNA backs such a multi-member panel of directors if it includes seats statutorily designated for credit union system representatives, including a state or federal credit union regulator, and possibly a state consumer agency representative.