Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

On March 31, 2021, the Board, Bureau, FDIC, NCUA, and OCC (together, the agencies) published in the Federal Register a document entitled ``Request for Information and Comment on Financial Institutions' Use of Artificial Intelligence, including Machine Learning'' (RFI) and invited comments on financial institutions' use of artificial intelligence (AI), including machine learning (ML). In response to concerns raised by commenters that the current comment deadline may not provide sufficient time to analyze and respond to the RFI due to the complex technical nature and significance of the topic, the agencies have determined that an extension of the comment period until July 1, 2021, is appropriate.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is announcing Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of new information collection requirements contained in an interim final rule published in the Federal Register on April 22, 2021, ``Debt Collection Practices in Connection with the Global COVID-19 Pandemic (Regulation F).'' See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below for additional information about this OMB approval.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is issuing its ninth Fair Lending Report of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Fair Lending Report) to Congress. The Bureau is committed to ensuring fair, equitable, and nondiscriminatory access to credit for both individuals and communities. This report describes our fair lending activities in supervision and enforcement; guidance and rulemaking; interagency coordination; and outreach and education for calendar year 2020.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is proposing a new information collection titled, ``Interim Final Rule on Debt Collection Practices in Connection with the Global COVID-19 Pandemic.''

In 2020, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) finalized two rules titled Debt Collection Practices (Regulation F). The rules revise Regulation F, which implements the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Both final rules have an effective date of November 30, 2021. The Bureau is proposing to extend that effective date by 60 days, until January 29, 2022.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is rescinding the Statement on Supervisory and Enforcement Practices Regarding Electronic Credit Card Disclosures in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is rescinding the Statement on Supervisory and Enforcement Practices Regarding Certain Filing Requirements Under the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act and Regulation J.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is rescinding the Statement on Supervisory and Enforcement Practices Regarding Bureau Information Collections for Credit Card and Prepaid Account Issuers.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is rescinding the Statement on Bureau Supervisory and Enforcement Response to COVID-19 Pandemic.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is publishing this agenda as part of the Fall 2020 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. The Bureau reasonably anticipates having the regulatory matters identified below under consideration during the period from November 2020 to November 2021. The next agenda will be published in spring 2021 and will update this agenda through spring 2022. Publication of this agenda is in accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection is rescinding the Statement of Policy Regarding Prohibition on Abusive Acts or Practices.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau), after consultation with the Committee Management Secretariat of the General Services Administration, will renew the Credit Union Advisory Council (the committee or the CUAC) effective on March 18, 2021. The CUAC was established to consult with the Bureau in the exercise of its functions under the Federal consumer financial laws as they pertain to credit unions with total assets of $10 billion or less.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau), after consultation with the Committee Management Secretariat of the General Services Administration, will renew the Academic Research Council (the committee or the ARC) effective on March 18, 2021. The ARC will provide the Bureau with advice about its strategic research planning process and research agenda, including views on the research that the Bureau should conduct relating to consumer financial products or services, consumer behavior, cost-benefit analysis, or other topics to enable the agency to further its statutory purposes and objectives; and, provide the Office of Research with technical advice and feedback on research methodologies, data collection strategies, and methods of analysis, including methodologies and strategies for quantifying the costs and benefits of regulatory actions.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is proposing to delay the mandatory compliance date of the final rule titled Qualified Mortgage Definition under the Truth in Lending Act (Regulation Z): General QM Loan Definition (General QM Final Rule) until October 1, 2022.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is adopting a final rule that codifies the Interagency Statement Clarifying the Role of Supervisory Guidance, issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), and the Bureau (collectively, the agencies) on September 11, 2018 (2018 Statement). By codifying the 2018 Statement, with amendments, the final rule confirms that the Bureau will continue to follow and respect the limits of administrative law in carrying out its supervisory responsibilities. The 2018 Statement reiterated well-established law by stating that, unlike a law or regulation, supervisory guidance does not have the force and effect of law. As such, supervisory guidance does not create binding legal obligations for the public. Because it is incorporated into the final rule, the 2018 Statement, as amended, is binding on the Bureau. The final rule adopts the rule as proposed without substantive change.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) recently published ``Qualified Mortgage Definition Under the Truth in Lending Act (Regulation Z): Seasoned QM Loan Definition,'' which appeared in the Federal Register on December 29, 2020. This document corrects a scrivener's error in an amendatory instruction in that document.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is issuing this Statement Regarding the Provision of Financial Products and Services to Consumers with Limited English Proficiency (Statement) to encourage financial institutions to better serve consumers with limited English proficiency (LEP) and to provide principles and guidelines to assist financial institutions in complying with the Dodd- Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act), the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), and other applicable laws.

Pursuant to the authorities given to the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) under the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) Director Kraninger invites the public to apply for membership for appointment to its Consumer Advisory Board (CAB), Community Bank Advisory Council (CBAC), Credit Union Advisory Council (CUAC), and Academic Research Council (ARC), (collectively, advisory committees). Membership of the advisory committees includes representatives of consumers, diverse communities, the financial services industry, academics, and economists. Appointments to the committees are generally for two years. However, the Director may amend the respective committee charters from time to time during the charter terms, as the Director deems necessary to accomplish the purpose of the committees. The Bureau expects to announce the selection of new members in late-summer 2021.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is amending the official commentary that interprets the requirements of the Bureau's Regulation Z (Truth in Lending) to reflect a change in the asset-size threshold for certain creditors to qualify for an exemption to the requirement to establish an escrow account for a higher-priced mortgage loan. This amendment is based on the annual percentage change in the average of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). Based on the 1.3 percent increase in the average of the CPI-W for the 12-month period ending in November 2020, the exemption threshold is adjusted to $2.230 billion from $2.202 billion. Therefore, creditors with assets of less than $2.230 billion (including assets of certain affiliates) as of December 31, 2020, are exempt, if other requirements of Regulation Z also are met, from establishing escrow accounts for higher-priced mortgage loans in 2021.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is issuing this advisory opinion to resolve regulatory uncertainty regarding the applicability of the definition of credit under Regulation Z, which implements the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), to certain earned wage access (EWA) programs that conform to the summary of material facts provided in part I.B of this advisory opinion.

The OCC, the Board, and the Bureau are finalizing amendments to the official interpretations for their regulations that implement section 129H of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA). Section 129H of TILA establishes special appraisal requirements for ``higher-risk mortgages,'' termed ``higher-priced mortgage loans'' or ``HPMLs'' in the agencies' regulations. The OCC, the Board, the Bureau, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) (collectively, the Agencies) jointly issued final rules implementing these requirements, effective January 18, 2014. The Agencies' rules exempted, among other loan types, transactions of $25,000 or less, and required that this loan amount be adjusted annually based on any annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). If there is no annual percentage increase in the CPI-W, the OCC, the Board, and the Bureau will not adjust this exemption threshold from the prior year. However, in years following a year in which the exemption threshold was not adjusted, the threshold is calculated by applying the annual percentage increase in the CPI-W to the dollar amount that would have resulted, after rounding, if the decreases and any subsequent increases in the CPI-W had been taken into account. Based on the CPI-W in effect as of June 1, 2020, the exemption threshold will remain at $27,200, effective January 1, 2021.

The Board and the Bureau are publishing final rules amending the official interpretations and commentary for the agencies' regulations that implement the Truth in Lending Act (TILA). The Dodd- Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) amended TILA by requiring that the dollar threshold for exempt consumer credit transactions be adjusted annually by the annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). If there is no annual percentage increase in the CPI-W, the Board and the Bureau will not adjust this exemption threshold from the prior year. However, in years following a year in which the exemption threshold was not adjusted, the threshold is calculated by applying the annual percentage change in the CPI-W to the dollar amount that would have resulted, after rounding, if the decreases and any subsequent increases in the CPI-W had been taken into account. Based on the annual percentage increase in the CPI-W as of June 1, 2020, the exemption threshold will remain at $58,300 effective January 1, 2021. Because the Dodd-Frank Act also requires similar adjustments in the Consumer Leasing Act's threshold for exempt consumer leases, the Board and the Bureau are making similar amendments to each of their respective regulations implementing the Consumer Leasing Act elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is issuing this final rule to revise Regulation F, which implements the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and currently contains the procedures for State application for exemption from the provisions of the FDCPA. The Bureau is finalizing Federal rules governing the activities of debt collectors, as that term is defined in the FDCPA. The Bureau's final rule addresses, among other things, communications in connection with debt collection and prohibitions on harassment or abuse, false or misleading representations, and unfair practices in debt collection.

In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, hereinto referred to as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau), gives notice of the establishment of a revised Privacy Act System of Records. This revised system will collect information related to the administration of the Bureau's advisory committees, to include applications to serve as members.

Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) provides, among other things, that subject to rules prescribed by the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau), a consumer financial services provider must make available to a consumer information in the control or possession of the provider concerning the consumer financial product or service that the consumer obtained from the provider. The Bureau is issuing this Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) to solicit comments and information to assist the Bureau in developing regulations to implement section 1033.