WASHINGTON–Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) is warning Russ Vought, acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, against using the government shutdown as an opportunity to furlough Bureau employees.
Because the CFPB receives funding from the Federal Reserve and isn’t reliant on the annual appropriations process, “such an action would be both legally baseless and extremely harmful to American consumers,” Waters, the ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee, said in a Tuesday letter to Vought.
Remaining ‘Operational’
The CFPB, meanwhile, informed employees Tuesday that it will remain operational in the event of a shutdown, which began Oct. 1, Reuters reported, citing an email sent to staff.
“CFPB will continue operations in the event of a shutdown, even though some other parts of the federal government would be affected,” Chief Operating Officer Adam Martinez wrote, according to Reuters. “Therefore CFPB employees should plan to report to work as usual on Wednesday, October 1, 2025.”
In her statement, Waters cited reports Vought was considering furloughing CFPB employees in light of the government shutdown.
“A shutdown does not apply to the CFPB,” Waters said, stating the bureau has continued its work through “multiple” government shutdowns. “Using a government shutdown as a pretext to furlough staff would not only violate the CFPB’s statutory mandate but would cause direct harm to American consumers.”
CFPB Director Also Leads OMB
Vought is also the director of the Office of Management and Budget, which last week told federal agencies to prepare plans, in the event of a shutdown, for permanent firings of staff involved in programs or projects that would see discretionary funding lapse.
Waters further referred to reports that Vought instructed CFPB employees to resubmit their resumes by Sept. 25 to inform decisions on employee cuts, “conveniently just a few days prior to a potential shutdown and while litigation continues in response to your illegal attempt to fire most of the staff earlier this year.”
Access to Funds
“You are ostensibly making this move in response to the massive reduction in the bureau’s funding cap imposed by Republicans in the budget reconciliation process,” Waters said in her statement to Vought. “Yet, beginning October 1, you will have access to new transfers from the Federal Reserve as the FY26 fiscal year begins, and those funds will be unaffected by any shutdown.”
As the CU Daily has been reporting, the CFPB has seen significant cuts to its budget under the Trump administration and has sought to terminate much of its staff.
