A federal judge in Washington, DC, has ordered an immediate termination of the planned dismissal of nearly 1,500 employees in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and ordered Trump’s administration to submit communication and make high officials available for testimony to determine whether they deliberately violated one of the court orders.
District judge Amy Merman Jackson told lawyers to the government that he was “very concerned” about efforts that appeared to be in a hurry to implement a reduction in strength, or RIF, from around 1483 employees at CFPB which were determined at 6 pm tonight.
Jackson said the steps by CFPB’s leadership, including the Management Office and the Russell Vouch Budget Director and OMB General Adjustment Mark Paoletta, in a clear coordination with a staff from the Operation Doge Elon Musk, Gavin Kliger, may violate the introductory decision that he has done – which is part of the DC circuit above the circuit above the circuit above the circuit above the circuit above veil. The order requires termination in the agency to be done only after the “special assessment” of individual employee performance.
He told the lawyer from the Department of Justice that the applicable reduction was “will not occur Meanwhile” and ordered them to suggest the leadership of the agency to clarify it to employees who have been told that they will be overthrown. Many of the employees sat in his courtroom on Friday, and some cried after the trial.
Jackson further ordered the trial for April 28 where he said Paoletta must be prepared to testify under oaths, and Kliger must also plan to be present to potentially make testimony. He also said the government must maintain and prepare to provide communication between Paoletta, Vought and Kliger before the trial to help him determine whether his preliminary order was deliberately violated.
Supporters of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau after Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Russell Vought told all agent staff to stay away from the office and not do work, outside CFPB in Washington, DC, February 10, 2025.
Craig Hudson/Reuters, File
Trump’s government has begun this week’s process to fire 1,474 employees in the consumer financial protection bureau, according to the declaration of vowing from Paoletta, Head of Agency Law Officials.
Administration plans to run an agency with 206 staff, according to the submission of a Friday morning court, a sharp decline from 1,680 employees who previously worked for consumer protection agents. Some departments in CFPB are cut entirely or reduced to one employee, according to Paoletta.
“An agent of around 200 people allowed the bureau to fulfill its legal tasks and be more in harmony with the priority and philosophy of new leadership management,” Paoletta wrote.
According to Paoletta, the agency leadership conducts “special assessments” of each department to determine how to run CFPB with “smaller and more efficient operations.”
“Leadership has found many examples where the bureau of activities has pushed far beyond the legal limit,” he wrote.
A security officer works inside the Headquarters of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Monday, February 10, 2025, in Washington.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP, File
CFPB, created by the Congress to protect Americans against unfair business practices after the 2008 financial crisis, has been targeted to be eliminated by President Donald Trump as part of his efforts to cut the Federal Government.
Trump said CFPB “is very important to be removed” and that the organization was “established to destroy some very good people.”
Supervision applies to everything, ranging from mortgage to credit cards to bank fees to student loans to data collection. Legally, CFPB has a rare ability to issue new rules and impose a fine on the company that solves it.
Since it was founded in 2011 to June, CFPB says he has re -granted $ 20.7 billion for American consumers.