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PHH Corporation will not appeal a January ruling that upheld the constitutionality of the CFPB's single-director structure, the company announced this week. NAFCU remains supportive of a commission-led CFPB in lieu of its current leadership structure.

In January, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the CFPB's constitutionality in the PHH Corp. lawsuit against the bureau – reversing the court's panel opinion from 2016 regarding the constitutional question. However, in a win for the credit union industry, the court did reinstate the October 2016 panel's decision regarding the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) issue, which held that former CFPB Director Richard Cordray's interpretation of RESPA was incorrect so the resultant $109 million penalty levied on PHH was invalid.

Last month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit agreed to hear a challenge to the CFPB's constitutionality. This appeal was requested by defendants accused by the CFPB in 2016 of engaging in unfair payday lending conduct.

NAFCU will monitor the suit for its impact on credit unions.

Current Acting CFPB Director Mick Mulvaney has even advocated for a commission-led CFPB, telling Congress that it would increase the bureau's accountability and reduce its partisanship. NAFCU has long advocated for this change, and is supportive of the Financial Product Safety Commission Act (H.R. 5266), which would accomplish that.