As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is defanged and the Department of Labor rolls back rules that would require retirement professionals to put the best interests or customers first, it’s easy to feel like nobody has our backs.

The good news is that individual states are coming to the rescue when it comes to financial regulation and protecting consumers. In my conversation with Maria Vullo, the Superintendent of Financial Services for the State of New York (DFS), you will learn how Vullo and her department attempt to regulate a wide swath of industries.

DFS has a lofty mission: “To reform the regulation of financial services in New York to keep pace with the rapid and dynamic evolution of these industries, to guard against financial crises and to protect consumers and markets from fraud.” Here’s what Vullo and her team are attempting to do on a daily basis:Eliminate financial fraud, other criminal abuse and unethical conduct in the industryEducate and protect users of financial products and services and ensure that users are provided with timely and understandable information to make responsible decisions about financial products and servicesEnsure the continued solvency, safety, soundness and prudent conduct of the providers of financial products and servicesProtect users of financial products and services from financially impaired or insolvent providers of such servicesEncourage high standards of honesty, transparency, fair business practices and public responsibilityOver the course of her distinguished career, Vullo’s specific legal experience has included litigations and investigations involving the financial services sectors and fraud, real estate, health care, insurance, tax, consumer protection, bankruptcy, antitrust, and constitutional law. She has argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Second, Ninth, and Tenth Circuits, and the New York State Appellate Division.

Ms. Vullo is a recognized leader in protecting women’s rights, including representing women raped by soldiers during the 1992-1995 Bosnian War, a case in which she secured a $745 million jury verdict for the plaintiffs. Her pro bono work also includes securing a $100 million jury verdict representing abortion providers whose lives had been threatened by an online “hit list.”

“Better Off” is sponsored by Betterment.

We love feedback so please leave us a rating or review in Apple Podcasts.

"Better Off" theme music is by Joel Goodman, www.joelgoodman.com.

Connect with me at these places for all my content:

http://www.jillonmoney.com/ 

https://twitter.com/jillonmoney 

https://www.facebook.com/JillonMoney 

https://www.instagram.com/jillonmoney/ 

https://www.youtube.com/c/JillSchlesinger 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillonmoney/ 

http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/jill-on-money 

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/better-off-jill-schlesinger/id431167790?mt=2