benefits

CFPB issues report on delivery of public benefits payments

By John L. Culhane, Jr., Michael Gordon & Kristen E. Larson on March 2, 2023

Posted in CFPB, Electronic Payments, Prepaid Cards, Regulatory and Enforcement

A new CFPB report, “Issue Spotlight: Public Benefits Delivery & Consumer Protection,” looks at what it describes as “the challenges that recipients of public benefits programs offering cash assistance encounter in accessing funds.” The report focuses on cash assistance provided on prepaid cards because the CFPB has observed “specific recurring issues arising with the provision of benefits by that method.”… Continue Reading

CFPB issues compliance bulletin on application of EFTA compulsory use prohibition to government benefits

By Ronald K. Vaske on February 21, 2022

Posted in CFPB, Electronic Payments, Regulatory and Enforcement

The CFPB has issued a compliance bulletin “to reiterate that the compulsory use prohibition in the [Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA)] applies to government benefit accounts, as defined in Regulation E.”

In the bulletin, the CFPB reviews what constitutes a “government benefit account” subject to the EFTA’s compulsory use prohibition. As implemented by Regulation E, the EFTA provides that no person may require a consumer to establish an account for receipt of an electronic fund transfer (EFT) with a particular financial institution as a condition of receipt of a government benefit. … Continue Reading