U.S. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE OPINION LETTER

U.S. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE OPINION LETTER

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 51 (Friday, March 20, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 51 (Friday, March 20, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S1442-S1443] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] U.S. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE OPINION LETTER Ms. WARREN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the GAO opinion letter dated March 16, 2026. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows: U.S. Government Accountability Office, Washington, DC, March 16, 2026. Hon. Elizabeth Warren, Ranking Member, Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, U.S. Senate. Dear Senator Warren: Thank you for your letter requesting that the Government Accountability Office provide its legal opinion on the applicability of the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to sixteen (16) specific Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) agency actions that had been rescinded by a May 12, 2025 CFPB Notice. As discussed with your staff, GAO cannot accept your request because this matter has been rendered moot for purposes of a GAO legal opinion. CRA requires agencies to submit rules to Congress and provides Congress with an opportunity to review and disapprove those rules so that they have no force or effect. GAO issues legal opinions on the applicability of CRA to agency actions that have not been submitted to Congress to ensure that Congress has an opportunity to disapprove those actions if they are rules under the statute. In this case, however, the [[Page S1443]] 16 actions identified in your letter are no longer legally effective as a result of CFPB's May 12, 2025 Notice. The Notice therefore rendered GAO's opinion on the applicability of the CRA to those documents a moot question. Moreover, CFPB's submission of the May 12, 2025 Notice to Congress in October 2025 as a rule under the CRA also rendered the need for a GAO opinion on the applicability of the CRA to that document also moot. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Edda Emmanuelli Perez at 202-512-5400 or emmanuellipereze@gao.gov , or Ms. Kisha H. Clark, Assistant Director, Congressional Relations on my staff at 202-512-3208 or clarkk@gao.gov . Sincerely yours, David Powner, Acting Managing Director, Congressional Relations. ____________________