Federal Reserve System August 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Board proposes to amend Regulation Z, which implements the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), and the Official Staff Commentary to the regulation, following a comprehensive review of TILA's rules for open- end home-secured credit, or home-equity lines of credit (HELOCs).

In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), the OCC, the Board, and the FDIC (the ``agencies'') may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), of which the agencies are members, has approved the agencies' publication for public comment of a proposal to extend, with revision, the Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income (Call Report), which are currently approved collections of information. At the end of the comment period, the comments and recommendations received will be analyzed to determine the extent to which the FFIEC and the agencies should modify the proposed revisions prior to giving final approval. The agencies will then submit the revisions to OMB for review and approval.

The Board is publishing final rules amending Regulation Z, which implements the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) following the passage of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA). Title X of the HEOA amends TILA by adding disclosure and timing requirements that apply to creditors making private education loans, which are defined as loans made for postsecondary educational expenses. The HEOA also amends TILA by adding limitations on certain practices by creditors, including limitations on ``co-branding'' their products with educational institutions in the marketing of private education loans. The HEOA requires that creditors obtain a self-certification form signed by the consumer before consummating the loan. It also requires creditors with preferred lender arrangements with educational institutions to provide certain information to those institutions.

The Board is publishing a final rule amending the staff commentary that interprets the requirements of Regulation Z (Truth in Lending). The Board is required to adjust annually the dollar amount that triggers requirements for certain home mortgage loans bearing fees above a certain amount. The Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1994 (HOEPA) sets forth rules for home-secured loans in which the total points and fees payable by the consumer at or before loan consummation exceed the greater of $400 or 8 percent of the total loan amount. In keeping with the statute, the Board has annually adjusted the $400 amount based on the annual percentage change reflected in the Consumer Price Index as reported on June 1st. The adjusted dollar amount for 2010 is $579.