Consumer Financial Protection Bureau prepares to open

A new federal watchdog will soon be charged with policing credit cards, mortgages and other financial products.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau won’t officially start exercising its rule-making power until July 21, but officials are already working to get the agency up and running. In addition to its broader policing responsibilities, the agency will have offices dedicated to improving financial literacy and protecting military service members and senior citizens from predatory products. It will also establish a toll-free hotline and website to field consumer complaints and questions.

There are blind spots for the agency’s oversight, however. Auto dealers, for example, will be exempt from the agency’s authority even though they provide the vast majority of financing for car buyers.