Union Sues CFPB Acting Director Vought, Accusing Him of Halting Bureau’s Operations
The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), representing employees of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), filed two lawsuits against acting director Russell Vought on Sunday, escalating a tumultuous weekend for the consumer watchdog agency, NBC News reports.
The lawsuits challenge a series of directives issued by Vought that effectively halted much of the CFPB’s activity, including supervision, examination, and stakeholder engagement.
The legal action follows an internal email, obtained by the news outlet, which revealed that CFPB employees were instructed to pause bureau functions and that the headquarters building in Washington would be closed this week.
One lawsuit seeks to prevent the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing employee information, alleging that Vought ordered CFPB employees to grant the DOGE team “access to all non-classified CFPB systems.” The union argues this access poses a significant threat to employee privacy:
“These employees face irreparable harm to their privacy interests if their employee information is improperly accessed and/or disseminated by individuals associated with DOGE. Once an employee’s personnel information is improperly disclosed, the harm to the employee cannot be undone.”
The other lawsuit focuses on Vought’s directives to cease key operations, including a pause on pending investigations. The union argues that these directives are unlawful and seeks a court order preventing Vought from further attempts to suspend the CFPB’s supervisory and enforcement work.
Vought’s email to CFPB staff on Saturday instructed them to “cease all supervision and examination activity,” “cease all stakeholder engagement” and pause all pending investigations, among other orders. He also announced on X that he had informed the Federal Reserve that the “CFPB will not be taking its next draw of unappropriated funding because it is not ‘reasonably necessary’ to carry out its duties.”
The CFPB has not yet issued a formal response, with Vought instructing staffers on Saturday to “not issue public communications of any type.”
The union’s actions are met with support from some lawmakers. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a key figure in the CFPB’s creation, denounced Vought’s directives as “giving big banks and giant corporations the green light to scam families.”
The CFPB has secured over $21 billion in consumer relief since its inception.
The NTEU has announced a protest outside the CFPB headquarters on Monday, demonstrating their opposition to Vought’s actions and their commitment to the bureau’s mission.
