Last week, the CFPB announced the appointment of new members to its advisory committees: Consumer Advisory Board (CAB), Community Bank Advisory Council (CBAC), Credit Union Advisory Council (CUAC), and Academic Research Council (ARC).

In 2019, Director Kraninger announced a series of enhancements to the Bureau’s advisory committee charters, including: expanding the focus of the meetings to cover broad policy matters; increasing the frequency of in-person meetings from two times a year to three times a year for the CAB, CBAC, and CUAC; elevating the ARC to a Director-level advisory committee and increasing its meeting frequency; and increasing term lengths from one year to two years.  The enhancements followed steps taken by the CFPB under former Acting Director Mulvaney to reconstitute the committees that were criticized by consumer advocates and former committee members.

The Dodd-Frank Act mandated the creation of the CAB to advise and consult with the Bureau’s Director on a variety of consumer financial issues. The CBAC, CUAC, and ARC are discretionary councils created by the Bureau.  The CBAC and CUAC advise and consult with the Bureau on consumer financial issues related to community banks and credit unions.  The ARC advises the Bureau on its strategic research planning process and research agenda and provides feedback on research methodologies, data collection strategies, and methods of analysis, including methodologies and strategies for quantifying the costs and benefits of regulatory actions.

The following members will serve on each of their respective committees:

Consumer Advisory Board

Eric Kaplan, Director of the Housing Finance Program, Milken Institute (Washington, DC), was appointed to serve as CAB Chairperson.  The other individuals appointed to the CAB are:

  • Joaquin Altoro, CEO, Wisconsin Housing & Economic Development Authority (Madison, WI)
  • Nikitra Bailey, EVP, Center for Responsible Lending (Durham, NC)
  • Lorray Brown, Attorney/Consumer Law Attorney, Co-Director, Michigan Poverty Law Program (Ypsilanti, MI)
  • Nadine Cohen, Managing Attorney, Greater Boston Legal Services (Boston, MA)
  • Mae Watson Grote, Founder and CEO, The Financial Clinic (Brooklyn, NY)
  • Tim Lampkin, CEO, Higher Purpose Co. (Clarksdale, MS)
  • Leigh Phillips, President and CEO, EARN DBA SaverLife (San Francisco, CA)
  • Jean Setzfand, Senior Vice President, AARP (Washington, DC)
  • Rebecca Steele, President/CEO, National Foundation for Credit Counseling (Washington, DC)
  • Tim Welsh, Vice Chairman Consumer and Business Banking, U.S. Bank (Minneapolis, MN)

Community Bank Advisory Council  

Valerie Quiett, SVP and Chief Legal Officer, Mechanics and Farmers (M&F) Bank (Durham, NC), was appointed to serve as CBAC Chairperson.  The other individuals appointed to the CBAC are:

  • John Buhrmaster, President & CEO, First National Bank of Scotia (Scotia, NY)
  • Patrick Ervin, EVP, Independent Bank (Troy, MI)
  • Shan Hayes, President and CEO, Heartland Tri-State Bank (Elkhart, KS)
  • Ronette Hauser-Jones, Mortgage Division President, Great Plains Bank (Oklahoma City, OK)
  • Bruce Ocko, Senior VP Director of Mortgage & Consumer Lending, Bangor Savings Bank (Bangor, ME)
  • Kristina Schaefer, General Counsel & Chief Risk Officer, Fishback Financial Corporation/First Bank & Trust (Brookings, SD)
  • Brad Williamson, CEO & President, Islanders Bank (Friday Harbor, WA)

Credit Union Advisory Council

Racardo McLaughlin, VP Mortgage Originations/Operations, TwinStar Credit Union (Lacey, WA), was appointed to serve as CUAC Chairperson.  The other individuals appointed to the CUAC are:

  • Monica Davis, Senior Vice President Risk management, Union Square Credit Union (Wichita Falls, TX)
  • Michelle Dwyer, President/CEO, Franklin First Federal Credit Union (Greenfield, MA)
  • Rick Durante, VP, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility and Government Affairs, Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union (Chadds Ford, PA)
  • Doe Gregersen, Vice President & General Counsel, Landmark Credit Union (New Berlin, WI)
  • Brian Holst, General Counsel, Elevations Credit Union (Boulder, CO)
  • Jose Iregui, Vice President of Loan Servicing and Collections, Langley Federal Credit Union (Newport News, VA)
  • Jeremiah Kossen, President & CEO, Town and Country Credit Union (Minot, ND)

 Academic Research Council

Joshua Wright, Professor, Scalia Law School at George Mason University (Arlington, VA), was appointed to serve as ARC Chairperson.  The other individuals appointed to the ARC are:

  • Michael Baye, Bert Elwert Professor of Business Economics, Indiana University (Bloomington, IN)
  • Vicki Bogan, Associate Professor, Cornell University (Ithaca, NY)
  • Terri Friedline, Associate Professor, University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI)
  • Tom Miller, Professor of Finance and Jack R. Lee Chair, Mississippi State University (Mississippi State, MS)
  • Michael Staten, Professor and Associate Dean, University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ)
  • Anthony Yezer, Professor of Economics, George Washington University (Washington, DC)