Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Announces Business Meeting
Washington,
April 24, 2014 -
The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations today announced it will hold a business meeting on Tuesday, April 29th for the purpose of authorizing the issuance of subpoenas compelling the testimony of two CFPB employees—M. Stacey Bach, Assistant Director of the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity; and Liza Strong, Director of Employee Relations—as well as Ben Konop, Executive Vice President, National Treasury Employees Union Chapter 335, at an upcoming hearing. Today’s announcement is part of the subcommittee’s ongoing investigation into allegations of discrimination and retaliation at the CFPB.
Bach, Strong and Konop were invited by the subcommittee to testify on behalf of the CFPB at an April 2 hearing in which a current CFPB employee and whistleblower, Angela Martin, and an investigator hired by the CFPB, Misty Raucci, described a culture of racial and gender discrimination and retaliation against employees at the CFPB. The CFPB refused to allow Bach and Strong to testify at the hearing and, in correspondence with the Subcommittee since that hearing, has continued to refuse to make them available for testimony. The NTEU refused to allow any CFPB union representative to testify at the hearing as well.
"As we continue our investigation into the claims of discrimination and retaliation at the CFPB, it is imperative that we are able to question Ms. Bach, Ms. Strong, and Mr. Konop. Through our investigation, it has become quite clear to this Committee that they are the three individuals with the most knowledge of the disturbing treatment which women and minority employees were subjected to while at the Bureau," said Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-NC).
“This investigation has never been about hearing one side of the story; it has been about hearing both sides of the story. Angela Martin’s testimony before the committee is evidence that her experience of discrimination and retaliation at the CFPB is just the tip of the iceberg. That is why it is important to have Ms. Bach, Ms. Strong, and Mr. Konop come before the subcommittee to explain how and why this is happening. I wish Director Cordray would have allowed them to testify at our earlier hearing. Because he refused, the subcommittee has no other choice than to move forward with this action,” said Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX).
The April 29 business meeting will take place at 2:00 P.M. in Rayburn 2128 and will be live streamed on the committee’s website republicans-financialservices.house.gov.
