Congress blocks CFPB's rollback of overdraft-fee protections
H.J.Res. 171 — Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection relating to the withdrawal of the rule relating to "Bulletin 2022-06: Unfair Returned Deposited Item Fee Assessment Practices". · Filed by Nikema Williams (D-GA) · Introduced Apr 30, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This resolution uses the Congressional Review Act to block the CFPB's 2025 decision to withdraw its 2022 guidance on unfair overdraft fees. By disapproving the withdrawal, Congress restores the CFPB's original rule protecting consumers from excessive returned-deposit fees charged by banks.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole function is to restore a CFPB consumer-protection rule by disapproving the agency's own withdrawal of it. This is a straightforward Congressional Review Act disapproval with a restorative effect.
What the text implies
- Restoring Bulletin 2022-06 may increase compliance costs for banks and credit unions, potentially leading to higher account fees or reduced overdraft-line availability for marginal customers.
- The resolution does not address whether the CFPB can attempt to withdraw the rule again through a new rulemaking; it only blocks this specific withdrawal notice.
- Disapproval under the CRA typically prevents the agency from reissuing a substantially similar rule without new congressional authorization, creating a procedural barrier to future CFPB action on this issue.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
Restoring the CFPB's overdraft-fee guidance protects consumers from excessive bank charges on returned deposits. Banks lose discretion to assess unfair fees; ordinary account holders retain a regulatory safeguard against predatory overdraft practices.
Named in the bill
Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB), U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Financial Services, Ms. Williams of Georgia, banks, credit unions
Where it stands
- Apr 30, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Apr 30, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Financial Services · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,345 characters) on Jun 3, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-10-20.
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