The CFPB finalized the long-awaited initial round of amendments to the TILA/RESPA Integrated Disclosure (TRID) rule, also known as the Know Before Your Owe rule. However, instead of addressing the so-called “black hole” issue, which refers to situations in which a lender may not be able to use a Closing Disclosure to reset fee tolerances, the CFPB punted by releasing a proposed rule on the issue.… Continue Reading
What the D.C. Circuit decision vacating stay of EPA rule could mean for final CFPB arbitration and payday loan rules
By Alan S. Kaplinsky on
I recently blogged about the rumor I heard from a reliable source that the CFPB will issue a final arbitration rule by the end of July. That rumor appears to be gaining traction, with a major industry trade group telling its members today that it expects the CFPB to issue a final arbitration rule “very soon.”… Continue Reading
Industry groups ask FHFA to extend comment period for LEP RFI
A group of eight trade associations has sent a letter to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) asking the FHFA to extend by at least 45 days the comment period on the FHFA’s Request for Input (RFI) on improving language access in mortgage lending and servicing. Issued this past May, the RFI asks for input to be provided by no later than July 10, 2017.… Continue Reading
CFPB files contempt motion for failure to comply with CIDs
By Barbara S. Mishkin on
Posted in CFPB Enforcement, Regulatory and Enforcement
The CFPB is asking a Michigan federal district court to hold two companies in contempt for failing to comply with civil investigative demands. While the CFPB has filed numerous petitions to enforce a CID, the contempt motion is reported to represent the first time that the CFPB has sought to have a CID recipient held in contempt for failing to comply.… Continue Reading
Trade association asks ED to confirm preemption of state student loan servicing requirements for federal student loans
By John L. Culhane, Jr. on
Posted in Regulatory and Enforcement, Student Loans
Education Finance Council, a national trade association representing state-based nonprofit higher education finance organizations, has asked the Department of Education to “publicly state” that the ED’s rules governing servicers of federal student loans preempt state laws and regulations that would impose conflicting requirements on such servicers.
In a letter to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, EFC expresses concern that state efforts to impose regulations on student loan servicers contracted by the federal government to service federal student loans threaten “to add an unnecessary web of regulations which are both duplicative and potentially contradictory to existing federal regulations and policies.” … Continue Reading
NJ Assembly contemplates harsh restrictions on prepaid accounts
By Lindsay C. Demaree on
Posted in Prepaid Cards, Regulatory and Enforcement
The New Jersey Legislature is considering a law to restrict prepaid-account fees. Assembly Bill 4965 ( the NJ Bill) seeks to impose fee constraints, disclosure mandates, and limits on consumer liability for unauthorized transfers, among other things. While many aspects of the proposed law mirror the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Final Prepaid Rule (the Bureau’s Prepaid Rule), the NJ Bill’s fee restrictions and disclosure mandates exceed federal requirements set to go into effect on April 1, 2018. … Continue Reading
CFPB issues eleventh Semi-Annual Report
By Barbara S. Mishkin on
The CFPB has issued its eleventh Semi-Annual Report to the President and Congress covering the period October 1, 2016 through March 31, 2017.
The 178-page report recycles information from previously-issued CFPB reports and reviews ongoing and past developments, which we have covered in previous blog posts.
By way of aggregate statistics, the report indicates that in the six-month period it covers, CFPB supervisory actions resulted in financial institutions providing more than $6.2 million in redress to over 16,549 consumers. … Continue Reading
FTC Updates COPPA Guidance
By Ballard CFS Group on
The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) released an updated version of its guidance on complying with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) on June 21, 2017. Companies that collect personal information from children under 13 years of age need to comply with COPPA. To help companies with COPPA compliance, the FTC’s guidance presents a six-step plan:
- Step 1: Determine whether your company is a website or online service that collects personal information from kids under 13;
- Step 2: Post a privacy policy that complies with COPPA;
- Step 3: Notify parents directly before collecting personal information from their kids;
- Step 4: Get parents’ verifiable consent before collecting personal information from their kids;
- Step 5: Honor parents’ ongoing rights with respect to personal information collected from their kids; and
- Step 6: Implement reasonable procedures to protect the security of kids’ personal information.
En banc D.C. Circuit split leaves intact panel ruling that SEC ALJs are not inferior officers
By Theodore R. Flo on
On June 26, 2017, the en banc D.C. Circuit was equally divided on the question of whether SEC administrative law judges (“ALJs”) are “inferior officers.” This leaves intact the D.C. Circuit panel decision in Lucia which held that SEC ALJs are not officers and do not have to be appointed by the President. … Continue Reading
Treasury report on U.S. financial system recommends extensive mortgage lending reforms
By Ballard CFS Group on
Posted in Mortgages, Regulatory and Enforcement
The U.S. Treasury Department recently issued a report titled “A Financial System That Creates Economic Opportunities-Banks and Credit Unions.” In addition to recommended changes for the CFPB, the report devotes substantial attention to the residential mortgage industry.
The report cites the size of the housing market, contributing approximately 18% to U.S.… Continue Reading