The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) 2017 report on the state of the credit card market is here. Lots of charts and info. The cynic in me wonders how much was spent by the government preparing this report. The CFPB annual budget is $630 million. Its budget report discusses four goals:
1. Prevent financial harm to consumers while promoting good practices that benefit them ($286 million)
2. Empower consumers to live better financial lives ($135 million)
3. Inform the public, policy makers, and the CFPB’s own policymaking with data-driven analysis of consumer finance markets and consumer behavior ($59 million)
4. Advance the CFPB’s performance by maximizing resource productivity and enhancing impact ($150 million)
The budget by “strategy goal” follows each of the above strategies.