31 Facts About Ben Konop

Benjamin Zachary Konop was born on March 1,1976 and is a Senior Litigation Counsel in the Office of Enforcement at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in Washington, DC He was a law professor and attorney in private practice.

In 2006, Konop was elected to a four-year term as Lucas County Commissioner.

Ben Konop ran unsuccessfully for Mayor of Toledo, Ohio in 2009.

Ben Konop ran unsuccessfully as the Democratic Party candidate in Ohio's 4th congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in 2004.

Ben Konop received his Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.

In 2004, Democrat Konop ran against the incumbent Republican US Representative Mike Oxley, of the 4th congressional district of Ohio.

Ben Konop became the first federal candidate of the Democratic Party to win Allen County since 1932.

In 2006, Ben Konop campaigned successfully for a Lucas County Commissioner, soundly defeating City Council member George Sarantou by promising to bring fresh perspectives to the county government.

Ben Konop won the election by over 40,000 votes, 89,928 to 49,768.

Ben Konop successfully pushed for the resignation of Lucas County Dog Warden due, in large part, to the high kill rate for dogs at the Lucas County Dog Pound.

In November 2009, Ben Konop made a successful motion to adopt a moratorium that banned the Dog Warden from killing puppies, including Pit Bull puppies, at least through 3 months of age.

Ben Konop authored a resolution for greater transparency of politicians' campaign donors, passed a policy against nepotism in county hiring, and led a community effort to preserve the Children's Wonderland exhibit.

In 2009, Ben Konop objected to the lack of economic and racial diversity on the Lucas County Planning Commission and gave up his own position on the board to Jim Snodgrass, Jr, an African American UAW factory worker at Jeep.

In spring of 2009, Ben Konop revealed his proposal for a $70 million publicly funded scholarship program aimed to increase the number of college-educated county residents without raising taxes.

Ben Konop's proposal was rejected by the other two commissioners and Konop cited the resolution's defeat as his greatest disappointment during his service.

In 2009, while still serving as the Lucas County Commissioner, Ben Konop began his campaign for the office of mayor of Toledo.

In defense, Ben Konop cited his greater obligation to bring changes urgently needed in Toledo, which has seen higher unemployment, increase in foreclosure problems, more possibility of police layoffs, and a larger deficit since 2006.

Ben Konop chose Old West End for the location, at the corner of Winthrop Street and Parkwood Avenue, where his mother grew up.

Ben Konop eventually met with Austin to address their common concerns about the city.

Ben Konop later participated in a follow-up video intending to spoof the heckler episode which brought him further negative coverage.

Ben Konop served the remainder of his term as the Commissioner.

Since 2011, Ben Konop has worked at the CFPB and currently serves as Senior Litigation Counsel in the Office of Enforcememt at the Bureau.

At the CFPB, in 2016 Ben Konop was lead Bureau counsel on CFPB vs Bridgepoint, in which the Bureau took action against Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

In CFPB vs Gamber, Konop served as lead Bureau counsel in a lawsuit with the Arkansas Attorney General against businesses brokering contracts offering high-interest credit to veterans, many of them disabled, who agreed to sell their retirement or disability benefits in exchange for a lump-sum payment.

Ben Konop represented the Bureau in a federal court contempt proceeding against mortgage broker Gary Klopp which resulted in a $525,000 disgorgement order by the court related to violations of a settlement agreement in a mortgage kickback scheme.

Recently, Ben Konop was lead Bureau counsel in CFPB vs American Honda Finance Corp.

In CFPB vs Loan Doctor, Ben Konop was lead counsel in a case where the Bureau alleged that the defendants falsely induced consumers to deposit funds in high yield accounts by deceiving consumers into thinking they were depositing funds into a guaranteed return savings product within a commercial bank.

In CFPB vs Driver Loan, Ben Konop served as lead Bureau counsel in a case where the Bureau alleged that the defendants violated federal law by misrepresenting the risks associated with their deposit product and the annual percentage rate associated with the consumer loans they made.

In 2012, Ben Konop helped found a chapter of the National Treasury Employee Union at the CFPB.

In 2014, Ben Konop helped lead the union's efforts to combat race, gender and age bias within the CFPB.

Ben Konop was subpoenaed by the committee as a witness and testified before Congress, highlighting his union members' concerns under Director Richard Cordray regarding pay equity and disparate impact affecting minorities, women, and employees over 40.