Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection December 23, 2021 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

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 changes in the asset-size thresholds for certain creditors to qualify for an exemption to the requirement to establish an escrow account for a higher-priced mortgage loan. These changes reflect updates to the exemption from TILA's escrow requirement of creditors that, together with affiliates that regularly extended covered transactions secured by first liens, had total assets of less than $2 billion (adjusted annually for inflation) and the exemption the Bureau added, by implementing section 108 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act (EGRRCPA), for certain insured depository institutions and insured credit unions with assets of $10 billion or less (adjusted annually for inflation). These amendments are 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 4.7 percent increase in the average of the CPI-W for the 12-month period ending in November 2021, the exemption threshold for creditors and their affiliates that regularly extended covered transactions secured by first liens is adjusted to $2.336 billion from $2.230 billion. The exemption threshold for certain insured depository institutions and insured credit unions with assets of $10 billion or less (adjusted annually for inflation) is adjusted to $10.473 billion from $10 billion.