At least five proposed rules and three final regulations will be issued by the federal consumer financial protection agency in the coming months, according to a report posted publicly late last week.
According to the Semi-Annual Report (dated Nov. 9) of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP, formerly known as the CFPB), proposed rules to come include a “reconsidered” payday lending rule (formally known as the “Payday,Vehicle Title, and Certain High-Cost Installment Loans” rule). The bureau has previously said it would issue the proposal in January.
Also on its list of proposals to come forward over the next several months are four on:
- Debt collection: The report states the agency “will work” toward releasing a proposal concerning Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) collectors’ communications practices and consumer disclosures (no release date is given, although in previous blog posts the agency has said that by March 2019 it expects to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the issue).
- Business lending data (Regulation B): The report states the agency is working to implement Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank) changes to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) through “development of proposed regulations concerning data to be collected, potential ways to minimize burdens on lenders, and appropriate procedures and privacy protections needed for information-gathering and public disclosure.” No release date is provided.
- Funds availability (Expedited Funds Availability Act, Regulation CC): The bureau said it will work with the Federal Reserve to “issue jointly a rule that includes provisions within the Bureau’s authority.” No issue date is given.
- Home mortgage disclosure (Regulation C): BCFP noted that in December 2017 it announced its intention to reconsider various aspects of the bureau’s 2015 rule under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), which could involve issues such as the institutional and transactional coverage tests and the rule’s discretionary data points. No timeline was provided (although in previous statements, the agency indicated that next spring is likely).
The bureau said in the report that the three expected final regulations will be to:
- Finalize an amendment to Regulation P (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, or GLBA) concerning annual notice requirements; no issue date provided.
- Outline procedures to be used by the public to obtain information from the bureau under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the Privacy Act of 1974, and in legal proceedings. No issue date was provided.
- Make amendments to existing rules relating to when a creditor may compare charges paid by or imposed on the consumer to amounts disclosed on a Closing Disclosure, instead of a Loan Estimate, to determine if an estimated closing cost was disclosed in good faith. The amendments would be made to federal mortgage disclosure requirements under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) that are implemented in Regulation Z. No date was given for release.
Semi-Annual Report of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Spring 2018)