Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough ruled that the Trump
Administration and congressional Republicans cannot use the pending
budget reconciliation bill to eliminate funding to the CFPB in a
June 23, 2025, announcement.
Under Senate rules, the budget process can be used only for
legislation primarily aimed at revenue and spending. As the budget
reconciliation process is immune to a filibuster, it cannot be
utilized to amend public policy. As Holland & Knight previously reported,
the pending budget reconciliation bill passed by the House of
Representatives included a provision aimed to eliminate nearly 70
percent of the CFPB's annual budget. MacDonough, whose role is
to ensure legislative procedure and rules are followed by
lawmakers, concluded that the CFPB budget cuts are not germane to
matters of revenue and spending and, thus, cannot be included in
the filibuster-proof reconciliation process under the Byrd
Rule.
