On January 19, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a new final rule implementing the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). According the CFPB’s press release, the purpose of the new final rule is to “clarif[y] the differences between regulations and supervisory guidance.” Specifically, “supervisory guidance does not…
On October 30, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a new final rule implementing the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). According the CFPB’s press release, the new final rule is designed “to restate and clarify prohibitions on harassment and abuse, false or misleading representations, and unfair practices…
As Lender Law Watch previously reported, in July 2020, to resolve the legal uncertainty discouraging many banks and companies from entering into partnerships to offer loans to consumers, the OCC issued its proposed true lender rule to address the question of which entity makes a loan when the “loan is…
On October 1, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its rule assessment for a final Rule relating to mortgage disclosures. Known as the TRID Rule, the Bureau’s final Rule implemented requirements under the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) to integrate various mortgage loan disclosures under the Truth in…
On August 31, 2020, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), an arm of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) within the Executive Branch, issued a memorandum (M-20-31 memorandum) directing the heads of federal executive departments and agencies to revise their procedures and practices in light of “the…
On July 29, 2020, the Consumer Protection Financial Bureau (CFPB) held a symposium on the use of cost-benefit analysis in consumer financial protection regulation. CFPB Director Kathleen Kraninger provided opening remarks, followed by two panels of experts. The first panel focused its discussion on how the CFPB uses cost-benefit analysis…
During a House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) oversight hearing on June 30, 2020, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin hinted that clarification may be coming on whether agents helping small businesses apply for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans are entitled to automatic fee reimbursements from PPP lenders. This clarification comes on the…
Passed in response to the impact of COVID-19, section 4021 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (H.R. 748, 116th Cong. (2020)) amended the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) in a variety of ways that impact credit reporting entities. Mainly, it requires a furnisher of credit information…
On February 14, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its Winter 2020 Supervisory Highlights (Report). It summarizes the CFPB’s findings on violations in the areas of debt collection, mortgage servicing, payday lending, and student loan servicing completed between April 2019 and August 2019. The CFPB notes that it…
At the start of the new year, both California’s Governor Newson and New York’s Governor Cuomo proposed expansions to their respective state’s regulatory oversight of consumer financial services. Of particular note, Governor Newson’s 2020-21 Budget Summary (California’s Proposal) explained that the reason behind California’s proposed regulatory expansion is the belief…
Last week, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) each issued a proposed rule designed to clarify that interest rates that are valid when a loan is made remain valid when the loan is transferred or sold. Together, the proposed rulemaking would…
On February 6, 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released a proposed rescission of the 2017 “Payday, Vehicle Title, and Certain High-Cost Installment Loans” final rule (Payday Rule), along with a “Payday, Vehicle Title, and Certain High-Cost Installment Loans; Delay of Compliance Date” (Delay of Compliance) notice. The Payday…
On December 10, 2018, Kathy Kraninger was sworn in to serve as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) for a five-year term. This followed her December 6, 2018 confirmation by the Senate with a vote of 50 to 49. Kraninger succeeds Mick Mulvaney, her former boss at…
On October 2, 2018, the U.S. Senate’s Banking Committee held a hearing to review regulators’ implementation of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act (S.2155) since its passage in June. As framed by Banking Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-ID), the law “right-sizes regulations for financial institutions, making it easier…
On March 1, 2018, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its sixth request for information (RFI) since Mick Mulvaney, acting head of the CFPB, began his tenure. This request seeks “comments and information from interested parties on the usefulness of complaint reporting and analysis, as well as specific suggestions or…
On February 27, 2018, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4296, which would reduce the operational capital requirements imposed on financial institutions. The bill passed with a 245-169 vote. As could be expected from such deregulatory legislation, only 19 Democrats voted in favor of the bill and only 3…
This December, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) released a letter to credit unions detailing its primary areas of supervisory focus for 2018. The NCUA intends for credit unions to rely on the letter to better prepare for their examinations by the NCUA throughout 2018. The seven areas of focus…
On October 5, 2017 the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) revealed its final rule regulating payday lending. For the past five years, the CFPB had been doing research and seeking comments from the industry on how to address its concerns with what it calls “lending traps” associated with small-dollar lending….
On August 23, 2017, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) published guidance on filings required by national banks and federal savings associations (collectively referred to here as “banks”) pertaining to “substantial asset changes.” The guidance lists various events that are considered substantial asset changes for which banks must…
On June 12, 2017, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a 150-page report called for by President Trump’s Executive Order 13772 on Core Principles for Regulating the United States Financial System. The Report, entitled “A Financial System that Creates Economic Opportunities: Banks and Credit Unions,” is the first in a…