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Fired NCUA Board Members Sue Trump Over Alleged Unlawful Dismissals

Todd Harper and Tanya Otsuka argue their mid-term removals violate legal protections for independent financial regulators and jeopardize the agency’s stability.

National Credit Union Administration Chairman Todd Harper testifies before a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing in the wake of recent bank failures, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., May 18, 2023. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo

Overview

  • Todd Harper and Tanya Otsuka, Democratic appointees to the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) board, filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking reinstatement after being fired by President Trump.
  • The pair allege their dismissals were unlawful, citing fixed-term protections designed to shield independent regulators from political interference.
  • The firings leave the NCUA board with only one member, Republican Kyle Hauptman, preventing the agency from maintaining the quorum required to conduct critical oversight functions.
  • The NCUA oversees the $2.3 trillion credit union sector and was established to operate independently to ensure financial system stability.
  • This legal challenge adds to a broader constitutional debate over presidential authority to remove officials from independent agencies, with similar cases involving the FTC, NLRB, and others potentially heading to the Supreme Court.