Message from the Inspector General
As I reflect on the last six months, I am reminded of the important role agency leadership plays in ensuring that our work contributes to the improvement of the programs and operations of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). In January, we bade farewell to Board Chairman Ben Bernanke. The former Chairman was extremely committed to effective oversight, and we greatly appreciated his strong support for the work of the Office of Inspector General (OIG). He is succeeded by Chair Janet Yellen. In her confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, as well as in her remarks at her ceremonial swearing in, Chair Yellen voiced her pledge to transparency and accountability and her intention to build on Chairman Bernanke’s legacy of openness. While Vice Chair, Chair Yellen was steadfast in her support of our mission. I have every confidence that, as Chair, she will remain vigilant in ensuring robust oversight at the Board, and I look forward to building an even stronger relationship with her.
We also appreciate CFPB Director Richard Cordray’s emphasis on the importance of oversight as the CFPB continues to establish its programs and as its operations mature. During this reporting period, we significantly expanded our reviews of the CFPB to help the agency improve its programs and operations. In addition, at the request of Director Cordray, Deputy Inspector General Tony Ogden and I spoke to CFPB staff at an invigorating lunch-and-learn session about the OIG’s mission, vision, values, and oversight role.
During this reporting period, we began work to initiate and implement the goals and objectives outlined in our Strategic Plan 2013–2016. This is a foundational year for us, as we lay the groundwork for enhancing timely, high-quality products and services; developing our workforce; engaging our stakeholders; and enhancing our internal operations. In particular, we embarked for the first time on developing a list of major management challenges for the Board and the CFPB. We believe this undertaking is important because it will enable us to focus our work on high-risk areas and to help Board and CFPB leaders by highlighting those challenges that, in our opinion, are critical for the agencies to confront to successfully accomplish their missions. We will report more fully on these challenges, as well as provide a progress report on our Strategic Plan, in the next Semiannual Report to Congress.
I look forward to working with Chair Yellen and Director Cordray on the challenges ahead as we continue to broaden the scope of the issues we review. As always, I would like to thank all OIG staff members for their continued commitment to helping the OIG be the trusted oversight organization of the Board and the CFPB.
Sincerely,
/signed/
Mark Bialek
Inspector General
April 30, 2014
