Energy Conservation Program: Test Procedure for Central Air Conditioners and Heat Pumps, 66935 [C1-2022-22257]
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66935
Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
Vol. 87, No. 214
Monday, November 7, 2022
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains regulatory documents having general
applicability and legal effect, most of which
are keyed to and codified in the Code of
Federal Regulations, which is published under
50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by
the Superintendent of Documents.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Parts 429 and 430
[EERE–2021–BT–TP–0030]
RIN 1904–AF29
Energy Conservation Program: Test
Procedure for Central Air Conditioners
and Heat Pumps
Correction
In rule document 2022–22257,
appearing on pages 64550–64607, in the
issue of Tuesday, October 25, 2022,
make the following correction:
■ Appendix M to Subpart B of Part 430
[Corrected]
On page 64588, in Appendix M to
Subpart B of Part 430, in the third
column, the equation in the 6th line
down is corrected to read as set forth
below.
Xk=2(Tj) = BL(Tj)/Qnk=2(Tj)
[FR Doc. C1–2022–22257 Filed 11–4–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 0099–10–P
BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL
PROTECTION
12 CFR Chapter X
Consumer Financial Protection
Circular 2022–06: Unanticipated
Overdraft Fee Assessment Practices
Bureau of Consumer Financial
Protection.
ACTION: Consumer financial protection
circular.
AGENCY:
The Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau (Bureau or CFPB) has
issued Consumer Financial Protection
Circular 2022–06, titled, ‘‘Unanticipated
Overdraft Fee Assessment Practices.’’ In
this Circular, the Bureau responds to the
question, ‘‘Can the assessment of
overdraft fees constitute an unfair act or
practice under the Consumer Financial
Protection Act (CFPA), even if the entity
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:02 Nov 04, 2022
Jkt 259001
complies with the Truth in Lending Act
(TILA) and Regulation Z, and the
Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA)
and Regulation E?’’
DATES: The Bureau released this
Circular on its website on October 26,
2022.
ADDRESSES: Enforcers, and the broader
public, can provide feedback and
comments to Circulars@cfpb.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Sonya Pass, Senior Legal Counsel, Legal
Division, at 202–435–7700. If you
require this document in an alternative
electronic format, please contact CFPB_
Accessibility@cfpb.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Question Presented
Can the assessment of overdraft fees
constitute an unfair act or practice
under the Consumer Financial
Protection Act (CFPA), even if the entity
complies with the Truth in Lending Act
(TILA) and Regulation Z, and the
Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA)
and Regulation E?
Response
Yes. Overdraft fee practices must
comply with TILA, EFTA, Regulation Z,
Regulation E, and the prohibition
against unfair, deceptive, and abusive
acts or practices in section 1036 of the
CFPA.1 In particular, overdraft fees
assessed by financial institutions on
transactions that a consumer would not
reasonably anticipate are likely unfair.
These unanticipated overdraft fees are
likely to impose substantial injury on
consumers that they cannot reasonably
avoid and that is not outweighed by
countervailing benefits to consumers or
competition.
As detailed in this Circular,
unanticipated overdraft fees may arise
in a variety of circumstances. For
example, financial institutions risk
charging overdraft fees that consumers
would not reasonably anticipate when
the transaction incurs a fee even though
the account had a sufficient available
balance at the time the financial
institution authorized the payment
(sometimes referred to as ‘‘authorize
positive, settle negative (APSN)’’).
Background
An overdraft occurs when consumers
have insufficient funds in their account
1 CFPA
PO 00000
section 1036, 12 U.S.C. 5536.
Frm 00001
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
to cover a transaction, but the financial
institution nevertheless pays it. Unlike
non-sufficient funds penalties, where a
financial institution incurs no credit
risk when it returns a transaction
unpaid for insufficient funds, clearing
an overdraft transaction is extending a
loan that can create credit risk for the
financial institution. Most financial
institutions today charge a flat pertransaction fee, which can be as high as
$36, for overdraft transactions,
regardless of the amount of credit risk,
if any, that they take.
Overdraft programs started as
courtesy programs under which
financial institutions would decide on a
manual, ad hoc basis to pay particular
check transactions for which consumers
lacked funds in their deposit accounts
rather than to return the transactions
unpaid, which may have other negative
consequences for consumers. Although
Congress did not exempt overdraft
programs offered in connection with
deposit accounts when it enacted
TILA,2 the Federal Reserve Board
(Board) in issuing Regulation Z in 1969
created a limited exemption from the
new regulation for financial institutions’
overdraft programs at that time (also
then commonly known as ‘‘bounce
protection programs’’).3
Overdraft programs in the 1990s
began to evolve away from this
historical model in a number of ways.
One major industry change was a shift
away from manual ad hoc decisionmaking by financial institution
employees to a system involving heavy
reliance on automated programs to
process transactions and to make
overdraft decisions. A second was to
impose higher overdraft fees. In
addition, broader changes in payment
transaction types increased the impacts
of these other changes on overdraft
programs. In particular, debit card use
expanded dramatically, and financial
institutions began charging overdraft
2 Public Law 90–321, 82 Stat. 146 (May 29, 1968),
codified as amended at 15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.
3 34 FR 2002 (Feb. 11, 1969). See also, e.g., 12
CFR 1026.4(c)(3) (excluding charges imposed by a
financial institution for paying items that overdraw
an account from the definition of ‘‘finance charge,’’
unless the payment of such items and the
imposition of the charge were previously agreed
upon in writing); 12 CFR 1026.4(b)(2) (providing
that any charge imposed on a checking or other
transaction account is an example of a finance
charge only to the extent that the charge exceeds the
charge for a similar account without a credit
feature).
E:\FR\FM\07NOR1.SGM
07NOR1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 214 (Monday, November 7, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 66935]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: C1-2022-22257]
========================================================================
Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 214 / Monday, November 7, 2022 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 66935]]
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Parts 429 and 430
[EERE-2021-BT-TP-0030]
RIN 1904-AF29
Energy Conservation Program: Test Procedure for Central Air
Conditioners and Heat Pumps
Correction
In rule document 2022-22257, appearing on pages 64550-64607, in the
issue of Tuesday, October 25, 2022, make the following correction:
[squf] Appendix M to Subpart B of Part 430 [Corrected]
On page 64588, in Appendix M to Subpart B of Part 430, in the third
column, the equation in the 6th line down is corrected to read as set
forth below.
Xk=2(Tj) = BL(Tj)/Qnk=2(Tj)
[FR Doc. C1-2022-22257 Filed 11-4-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 0099-10-P