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Today, the House Financial Services Committee is holding an Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee hearing, led by Subcommittee Chairman Dan Meuser (PA-09), to examine the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's (CFPB) broad investigative authority and the harm its regulation by enforcement scheme has caused to working-class Americans.

Read Subcommittee Chairman Meuser’s opening remarks as prepared for delivery:

"Today’s hearing is titled, 'From Watchdog to Attack Dog: Examining the CFPB’s Chopra-era Assault on Disfavored Industries.' I would like to thank the witnesses for being here today to discuss the harmful actions of the CFPB under the leadership of its former Director, Rohit Chopra.

"The CFPB was created to be a nonpartisan watchdog—an agency tasked with protecting American consumers from deceptive, unfair, and abusive financial practices.

"But under Director Chopra, that mission was abandoned. The CFPB ceased to be a pro-consumer agency and instead became a ideological weapon—used not to protect the public, but to pressure businesses into aligning with the CFPB’s goals through aggressive rules, enforcement, and supervision.

"Chopra targeted entire sectors he disfavored, wielding the agency’s enforcement powers to intimidate and financially exhaust companies that didn’t share his progressive vision for the marketplace.

"One of the most troubling examples of this overreach was the aggressive use of Civil Investigative Demands, or CIDs.

"CIDs are powerful legal tools that allow the CFPB to demand vast amounts of documents, data, and testimony—often with little justification or judicial oversight.

"Under Chopra, the CFPB issued CIDs to effectively weaponize the agency’s authority to bury small firms in compliance costs and reputational damage before any wrongdoing was proven.

"While a business can petition a CID, the decision on any petition was ultimately at the discretion of the Director. Unsurprisingly, Director Chopra denied 100% of the petitions he received.

"Under the first Trump Administration, 6 petitions were granted to overturn CIDs.

"For many businesses, especially small ones, the process of responding to a CID is a challenging task—often leading to layoffs, loss of customers, and in some cases, closures.

"One of our witnesses here today will explain just how devastating these CIDs were.

"Under Chopra, the process became the punishment. The threat of a CFPB investigation was less about compliance and more about survival, especially for smaller businesses.

"This is not consumer protection. It is bureaucratic intimidation—and it has no place in a system governed by the rule of law.

"I applaud President Trump for ending this campaign of coercion at the CFPB. Businesses operating legally should not have to fear their own government.

"That’s why today, I’ve sent a letter to the CFPB’s Acting Inspector General requesting a formal investigation into whether Director Chopra consistently exceeded his statutory authority.

"Congress must act to ensure the CFPB cannot be weaponized again. Under the Trump Administration, legally operating, ethical businesses no longer live in fear of being punished.

"Chopra’s tenure has made one thing clear—Congress must ensure the CFPB, or any agency for that matter, can never again be weaponized for ideological purposes.

"Of the countless banks and compliance officers both large and small that I’ve spoken to, I have not heard from one that had anything positive to say about Director Chopra.

"And I’ve met with Former Director Chopra several times and told him about these concerns. It made no difference and he and his CFPB continued its crusade.

"I look forward to hearing from the witnesses on how Congress can help the CFPB return to its core mission—protecting American consumers."