Compliance Stuff

President Trump  has nominated  Stuart Levenbach to serve as permanent director of the CFPB. Levenbach is an Office of Management and Budget official and aide to OMB Director, and current CFPB Acting Director, Russ Vought. If the Senate confirms Levenbach, he likely would continue Vought’s work to  close down  the CFPB . President Trump withdrew his prior nominee to run the Bureau, Jonathan McKernan, last May. Acting Director Vought’s Term Gets Extended. One byproduct of Levenbach’s nomination is that it allows Vought to continue serving as the CFPB’s acting director . Under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, an individual may remain acting director for no longer than 210 days, beginning on the date of the vacancy . However, an acting director may continue to serve while a first or second nomination of a permanent director is pending. And if the nomination is withdrawn (as happened with the prior nomination for permanent director) then an acting director may serve for...

  A return to the presidency by Donald Trump has raised questions about the future of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the broader landscape of environmental policy in the United States. Given Trump’s past policies and statements, his administration may pursue significant changes to the EPA’s mission, budget, and regulatory approach. This article reviews Trump’s historical approach to environmental policy, the EPA’s role in U.S. environmental protection, and what Trump’s second term may look like. Historical Context: Trump’s Environmental Policies During his presidency from 2017 to 2021, Trump prioritized deregulation as part of his broader economic agenda, particularly in industries such as energy, manufacturing, and construction. Under his administration, the EPA faced considerable restructuring and budget cuts, and many of its regulatory roles were scaled back. Some of the most notable shifts in Trump’s environmental policies included: Rollbacks of Key Regula...