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April 2023 » thefivestar.com 63 J O U R N A L April 2023 THREE- JUDGE PANEL VALIDATES CPFB'S INDEPENDENT FUNDING A head of an expected ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, a three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Ap- peals for the Second Circuit has ruled that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CPFB) independent funding through the Federal Reserve is constitutional. The unanimous ruling further solidifies provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. The CPFB was created in 2008 with the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act and is funded by the Federal Reserve, not Congress. Since its inception, the CFPB has recovered approximately $15 billion for customers, including a recent record $1.7 billion civil fine, in addition to $2 billion in mandated customer reimburse- ments, imposed by the CFPB on Wells Fargo for abuses related to customer accounts. The case at hand deals with the Law Of- fices of Cristal Moroney PC, a debt collection law firm out of New York, which is attempt- ing to get around a civil subpoena issued against them in 2017. Previously, a lower court ruled in the CFPB's favor in August 2020. SCOTUS is expected to hear the case on its October 2023 schedule. The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit previously ruled that the CPFB's funding vio- lates the Constitution and should be subject to Congressional appropriations. In its ruling, the Second Circuit found that there is no supporting evidence to grant validity to the Fifth Circuit's ruling. HUD AWARDS OVER $54M TO COMBAT HOUSING DISCRIMINATION T he U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded $54 million to 182 fair housing organizations across the country under its Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP). The grants will provide $28,200,000 to support the efforts of national, state, and local fair housing entities working to address viola- tions of the Fair Housing Act and helping to end discrimination in housing. In addition, HUD provided $26,350,000 in funding to its second- and third-year Private Enforcement Initiative grantees to continue fair housing enforcement efforts nationwide. "Far too many families in our country still face unconscionable prejudice, both as renters and homeowners," HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge said. "The Fair Housing Initiatives Program puts money into commu- nities to help them root out discrimination in housing. I am pleased to provide our state and local partners with the resources they need to combat inequity and build a fairer, more inclusive country for all." The awarding of these funds precedes the first anniversary of the Biden-Harris admin- istration's Interagency Task Force on Property Appraisal and Valuation Equity (PAVE) Action Plan—led by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Marcia L. Fudge and White House Domestic Policy Advisor Ambassador Susan Rice. The PAVE Action plan represents the most wide-rang- ing set of commitments ever announced to advance equity in the home appraisal process. Eligible activities for the funding awarded today included testing for appraisal bias and educating local communities on the issue. The grant funding will allow the grantees to provide fair housing enforcement by con- ducting investigations, testing to identify dis- crimination in the rental and sales markets, and filing fair housing complaints with HUD or substantially equivalent state and local agencies. In addition, grantees will conduct education and outreach activities to inform the public, housing providers, and local Government