It is widely expected that if a Democrat wins the presidential election, the new administration will once again strengthen the CFPB.

Brian Johnson, deputy director at the CFPB, has left the agency for a position at law firm Alston & Bird. His departure brings the tally of political appointees leaving the bureau to four.

A court settlement has forced the CFPB to outline proposed rulemaking on data collection requirements in the small-business lending space no later than September.

The CFPB published new frequently asked questions on the disclosure and treatment of lender credits under the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure rule.

During a congressional oversight hearing, House Financial Services Committee members grilled CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger on the bureau’s interpretation of the abusiveness standard, plans to reform the qualified-mortgage rule and the controversial RESPA bulletin.

The consumer watchdog hiked its budget for 2020, taking its spending to levels last seen in 2017.

Two top Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee are pressing for the immediate suspension of a newly-formed task force on federal consumer law.

The bureau has released three surveys as part of its review of the integrated mortgage disclosure rule. According to comments received so far, the industry seeks clarity in the rule’s timing requirements.

Fitch Ratings raised concerns about the CFPB’s plan to move away from the debt-to-income ratio in defining a qualified mortgage. It believes the DTI ratio is a better predictor of borrower default risk.

CFPB-Education Department MOU; CFPB’s associate director for research, markets and regulation resigns; Puerto Rico reporting requirements; debt collection event.