Acting CFPB Director Dave Uejio posted a message on the CFPB blog today. The White House announced last week that President Biden had appointed Uejio to serve as Acting CFPB Director until the confirmation of a permanent Director to lead the Bureau. 

In his post, Uejio said he will be reversing the CFPB’s policy on routine MLA exams and rescinding “public statements conveying a relaxed approach to enforcement.” Uejio also said his priorities as Acting Director will be “(1) relief for consumers facing hardship due to COVID-19 and the related economic crisis, and (2) racial equity.”

The message outlined several policy changes he intends to take as Acting Director: 

• Moving forward, the CFPB will take aggressive action “to ensure that regulated companies follow the law and meet their obligations to assist consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
• Uejio has directed the Supervision, Enforcement, Fair Lending Division (SEFL) to “always determine the full scope of issues found in its exams, systemically remediate all of those who are harmed, and change policies, procedures, and practices to address the root causes of harms.” He has also directed SEFL to expedite enforcement investigations relating to COVID-19.
• Uejio will be reversing policies of the last administration that “weakened enforcement and supervision”:
• On racial equity, Uejio said he plans “elevate and expand existing investigations and exams and add new ones to ensure the CFPB has a healthy docket intended to address racial equity”  with fair lending enforcement being a top priority.