CFPB Publishes Notice Regarding Semiannual Regulatory Agenda
December 23, 2016 the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published Federal Register Notice Vol. 81, No. 247, Semiannual Regulatory Agenda. The notice is published as part of the Fall 2016 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. The CFPB anticipates having the regulatory matters identified in the Federal Register under consideration during the period from November 1, 2016 to October 31, 2017. The next agenda will be published in the Spring of 2017. The Unified Agenda, which largely mirrors the items outlined in the past several editions, includes rulemaking actions in pre-rule, proposed rule, final rule, long-term, and completed stages. Outlined below is a brief summary of various Bureau initiatives.
Mortgage Disclosure Rules
Earlier this year the Bureau released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to make small clarifications and provide further regulatory guidance that will facilitate implementation of its Know Before You Owe mortgage rule combining several federal disclosures that consumers receive in connection with applying for and closing on a mortgage loan under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. The Bureau is continuing other efforts to implement critical consumer protections under the Dodd-Frank Act and is continuing its work to facilitate implementation of the new requirements, including follow-up rulemaking where warranted. The Bureau is working planning for implementation of its rule to implement Dodd-Frank Act amendments to HMDA. Though certain elements of the rule take effect in January 2017, most new data collection requirements take effect in January 2018. The Bureau is also working to streamline and modernize the HMDA data reporting processes in conjunction with implementation of the regulatory changes, and is conducting outreach with industry to prepare for both the regulatory and operational changes.
Larger Participants and Non-depository Lender Registration
The Bureau is continuing rulemaking activities that will further establish the Bureau’s nonbank supervisory authority by defining larger participants of certain markets for consumer financial products and services. Larger participants of such markets, as the Bureau defines by rule, are subject to the Bureau’s supervisory authority. The Bureau expects that its next larger participant rulemaking will focus on the markets for consumer installment loans and vehicle title loans for purposes of supervision. The Bureau is also considering whether rules to require registration of these or other non-depository lenders would facilitate supervision, as has been suggested to the Bureau by both industry groups and consumer advocates.
Developing Initiatives
Arbitration. The Bureau issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in May 2016 concerning the use of arbitration clauses in consumer financial agreements. The rulemaking follows on a report that the Bureau issued to Congress in March 2015 as required by the Dodd-Frank Act, as well as on preliminary results of arbitration research that were released by the Bureau in December 2013. The proposal was primarily focused on addressing concerns that arbitration clauses are being used to prevent groups of consumers from joining together to seek effective relief from wrongdoing by financial companies.
Debt collection. The Bureau is engaged in developing proposed rules to regulate debt collection practices. Building on the Bureau’s November 2013, Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Bureau released materials in July 2016 in advance of convening a panel under the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) in conjunction with the Office of Management and Budget and the Small Business Administration’s Chief Counsel for Advocacy. The purpose of the panel was to consult with small businesses that are considered “debt collectors” under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The CFPB has also been analyzing the results of a survey to obtain information from consumers about their experiences with debt collection and plans to publish a report on the survey in coming months.
Other Projects
The Unified Agenda also notes that the Bureau has been engaged in research and other early work on other issues, such as checking overdraft and implementation of other Dodd-Frank Act provisions. The Bureau is continuing to engage in additional research and has begun consumer testing initiatives relating to the opt-in process. The Bureau is also in the very early stages of starting work to implement section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act, which amends the Equal Credit Opportunity Act to require financial institutions to report information concerning credit applications made by women-owned, minority-owned, and small businesses. The Bureau is focusing on outreach and research to develop its understanding of the players, products, and practices in the small business lending market and of the potential ways to implement section 1071.
Long-Term Initiatives
The Bureau also publishes a portion of the Unified Agenda focusing on long-term actions to reflect potential initiatives beyond those identified above. These include potential rulemakings to address consumer issues in the markets for student loan servicing and credit reporting. The Bureau has been monitoring both markets for trends and developments through its supervisory, enforcement, and research efforts.
Anna DeSimone founded Bankers Advisory in 1986 and is a nationally recognized authority in residential mortgage lending. She has received numerous industry awards and has authored more than 40 best practices guides and hundreds of articles.
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