The economic and financial crisis has demonstrated that the current financial regulatory system permits banks, mortgage brokers and servicers, and other firms to enrich themselves at the expense of ordinary Americans. Abusive and fraudulent mortgages sold to unsuspecting homeowners fueled the housing crisis, while credit card companies use deceptive billing practices to mire cardholders in debt. While consumers are protected from faulty products like toasters, no agency is tasked with overseeing the financial products and services – from credit cards to mortgages to student loans – that Americans rely on every day to earn a middle-class standard of living. The Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA) Act would create an oversight body to ensure that the financial services industry no longer takes advantage of ordinary consumers. The CFPA would regulate consumer financial products and services, defining minimum standards for mortgages and other loans. The Act expands and concentrates current regulations regarding consumer financial products in the CFPA to promote transparency, simplicity, fairness, and access and to prevent fraud and abuse. Finally, the legislation encourages state standards to deter deceptive and fraudulent lending practices while ensuring that the new agency does not undermine strong state consumer financial protection laws.