Former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau senior official Christopher Peterson has been nominated to lead the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill on Monday tapped Peterson, who worked at the CFPB from 2012 to 2016 and is a law professor at the University of Utah.

He’s one of at least two recent state-level consumer advocacy hires, after California named former CFPB chief Rohit Chopra head of its newly formed business and consumer services agency.

“At a time when the CFPB has abandoned the consumers it should be protecting and New Jersey families are facing rising costs from Donald Trump’s war in Iran and illegal tariffs, Chris’s unparalleled experience protecting families from predatory practices will help ensure New Jersey remains at the forefront of consumer protection and continues standing up for residents no matter what is happening in Washington,” Sherrill said in a prepared statement.

In the CFPB’s early years, Peterson helped shape the agency, according to his hiring announcement, and was instrumental in developing the Military Lending Act, which protects service members and their families from predatory lending practices.

As director of New Jersey’s Division of Consumer Affairs, he will lead the agency responsible for overseeing 51 professional boards, protecting consumer rights and regulating the securities industry.

“Chris has a remarkable record of holding lawbreakers accountable and relentlessly pursuing economic justice for consumers and military families throughout his career,” New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport said in a prepared statement.

Peterson will take the role in an acting capacity Aug. 3, pending formal nomination, which is subject to consent of the New Jersey state Senate. Current acting director Jeremy Hollander will return to his position as deputy director of the division’s Office of Consumer Protection.