Mulvaney requests no funding for consumer agency in 2Q

NEW YORK – The Trump-appointed acting director of the federal government’s consumer watchdog agency is requesting zero dollars of funding for its second-quarter budget, saying he intends to first spend down the agency’s rainy day fund.

In a letter to the Federal Reserve, which directly funds the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Mick Mulvaney said the bureau does not need any new funds to operate during its second quarter. The bureau has on deposit $177.1 million to cover emergencies and contingencies, which Mulvaney says is too large. He said he intends to spend that down by roughly $145 million.

The $145 million budget estimate is roughly equal to what Richard Cordray, who was appointed by Obama as the first permanent director of the bureau, requested for the CFPB in the second quarter of 2017.