Thomas Pahl is the new deputy director of the federal consumer financial protection bureau, the third person to fill that position so far this year.
The agency also announced a new division consolidating its external engagement and communications responsibilities.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) said Pahl has previously served as policy associate director for research, markets, and regulations for the bureau since April 2018. Before that, he was the acting director of the bureau of consumer protection at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Before that, he was at the bureau from 2013–16 as managing counsel for the office of regulations at the CFPB. He has also held previous roles at the FTC focused on enforcement, rulemaking, and policy on financial services matters. The bureau said Pahl received a BA from the College of St. Thomas and a JD from Northwestern University School of Law.
Pahl replaces in the position Leonard Chanin, who split time in that job with his other role at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) as deputy to Board Chairman Jelena McWilliams, a position he assumed in 2019. Chanin, in turn, took the place of Brian Johnson, who left the CFPB in early March to join a Washington law firm.
The bureau, in the same release, also announced the creation of a new Consumer Education and External Affairs (CEEA) division, which consolidates a number of existing responsibilities at the agency.
The CFPB said the new division will “focus on a more coordinated and Bureau-wide approach to engagement and communication with consumers, policymakers, academics, and other stakeholders.”
The division will be led, the bureau said, by Policy Associate Director Andrew Duke, who was named to that position in 2019. According to a biographical sketch on the CFPB website, he “has 27 years of experience in public policy, including 20 years on Capitol Hill serving with three different members of Congress.”
The bureau said other leaders within the new division are:
- Delicia Reynolds Hand, who will serve as deputy associate director for the consumer education and external affairs division. She joined the agency in 2012 and has, the agency said, more than 20 years of experience, having worked in consumer advocacy, community and economic development, and on Capitol Hill
- Desmond Brown, who will serve as the assistant director for the office of consumer education. The agency said he has more than two decades of experience working with national and local organizations to increase financial well-being and economic opportunities for consumers. He joined the bureau in 2012.
- Matt Cameron, who will serve as assistant director for the office of stakeholder management. He also joined the bureau in 2012.
The bureau said that the CEEA division will also include the newly formed Office of Public Affairs, which will be led by Marisol Garibay, and the Office of Consumer Response, which will be led by Christopher Johnson.
CFPB Director Kraninger Announces Deputy Director; Additions to Executive Team