Federal Reserve System November 2021 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

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). Under regulations adopted by the Board and the Bureau, 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, 2021, the exemption threshold will increase from $58,300 to $61,000 effective January 1, 2022. 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 the Rules section of this issue of the Federal Register.

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, 2021, the exemption threshold will increase from $27,200 to $28,500, effective January 1, 2022.

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, without revision, the Written Security Program for State Member Banks (FR 4004, OMB No. 7100-0112).

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, without revision, the Semiannual Report of Derivatives Activity (FR 2436; OMB No. 7100-0286).

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, without revision, the Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Disclosure Requirements Associated with Regulation NN (FR NN; OMB No. 7100-0353).

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) is adopting a proposal extend for three years, without revision, the Recordkeeping and Disclosure Requirements Associated with the CFPB's Regulation B (FR B; OMB No. 7100-0201).

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) (collectively, the agencies) have prepared this report pursuant to section 37(c) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act. Section 37(c) requires the agencies to jointly submit an annual report to the Committee on Financial Services of the U.S. House of Representatives and to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the U.S. Senate describing differences among the accounting and capital standards used by the agencies for insured depository institutions (institutions).\1\ Section 37(c) requires that this report be published in the Federal Register. The agencies have not identified any material differences among the agencies' accounting and capital standards applicable to the insured depository institutions they regulate and supervise.

Pursuant to the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974, notice is given that the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) proposes to establish a new system of records, entitled BGFRS- 44, ``FRBPublic Health and Safety System.'' This system of records maintains information collected in response to a public health emergency, such as a pandemic or disaster, or other health and safety concerns when necessary to ensure a safe and healthy environment for Board employees, contractors, and other individuals who work for the Board.

In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 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. On July 22, 2021, the agencies, under the auspices of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), requested public comment for 60 days on proposals to revise and extend for three years the Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income (Call Reports) (FFIEC 031, FFIEC 041, and FFIEC 051), which is currently an approved collection of information. The agencies requested comment on proposed changes to the instructions for reporting of deferred tax assets (DTAs) and to add a new item related to the standardized approach for counterparty credit risk (SA-CCR). The comment period for the notice has closed. The agencies are adding the new item related to SA-CCR as proposed. The agencies are deferring the proposed changes to the instructions for reporting of DTAs until a future notice, which will also provide an opportunity for additional comment on the instructions. The agencies hereby give notice of their plan to submit to OMB a request to approve the revision and extension of these information collections and again invite comment on the renewal.

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) is adopting a proposal to extend for three years, with revision, FR 27New Hire Information Collection.

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, with revision the Recordkeeping and Disclosure Requirements Associated with Loans Secured by Real Estate Located in Flood Hazard Areas Pursuant to Regulation H (FR H-2; OMB 7100-0280) of the Board's rules.