John “Joe” Allen, the acting head of the watchdog group tasked with overseeing the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), has reportedly been removed from his position.
Reuters first reported the news of Allen’s ouster, citing four people familiar with the matter.
Allen was named acting chief of the FHFA Office of Inspector General (OIG) in April, following the departure of Inspector General Brian Tomney. Allen also served as chief counsel.
Neither the FHFA nor the agency’s OIG have responded to Scotsman Guide’s requests for comment, though Allen’s bio page on the OIG website has been replaced with text reading, “The FHFA-OIG Inspector General position is currently vacant.”
Allen joined the OIG in 2024 after a nearly 40-year career with the Department of Justice (DOJ). His reported dismissal leaves a leadership void at the oversight division during a time when the FHFA and its director, Bill Pulte, have drawn the scrutiny of a group of Democratic lawmakers.
In September, those 24 U.S. representatives — led by Maxine Waters, the ranking Democratic member of the House Committee on Financial Services — sent a letter to Allen questioning whether Pulte had “complied with all applicable federal and agency statutes, regulations, policies, and procedures” when he personally referred Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook to the DOJ for alleged mortgage fraud.
Ten days after Pulte made that criminal referral, President Donald Trump used it as justification for moving to fire Cook. The Fed governor received favorable rulings from a U.S. district court and a federal appeals court, allowing her to continue serving on the central bank’s board while the case proceeds. The Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on the matter in January.
Mortgage fraud referrals to the DOJ have historically come from the OIG, not directly from the FHFA director. The letter from Waters and her congressional colleagues asked Allen if his office had participated in an internal review process prior to Pulte’s criminal referral of Cook.
“If so, what activities did it perform and has your office assessed and determined whether it complied with all applicable federal and agency statutes, regulations, and procedures regarding such activities?” the letter asked.
A spokesperson for the agency watchdog told Scotsman Guide in September that while the office had received Waters’ letter, “We do not comment on the existence or non-existence of investigations conducted by the FHFA OIG.”
