“You know, there are several large lenders that are headquartered in California, and there are many, many lenders and brokers that do business in California,” Idziak told Mortgage Professional America. “So to the extent that California is looking to fill the federal void and become sort of the new regulator and enforcer of federal consumer financial law, I think it’s an important appointment.”
What brokers should watch
The federal pullback in consumer finance supervision has created a temptation, Idziak said, that brokers need to resist. Fewer enforcement actions at the federal level do not mean the rules have changed.
“What I would say is that lawyers like myself have, I think, been almost universal in advising our clients that until the rules change, you need to continue to follow them, even if it looks like there are fewer cops on the beat,” he said.
Chopra’s appointment signals that California intends to step into the space the federal government has vacated, Idziak said. The existing body of consumer financial law from the Biden administration remains in effect, he said, and Chopra does not need new rules to be aggressive.
Idziak said AI enforcement is the area he would watch most closely. The CFPB under Chopra published guidance urging caution on AI tools due to fair lending and UDAAP concerns, and he said that regulatory instinct is likely to follow him to California.
