On February 18, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a Compliance Bulletin and Policy Guidance (Bulletin) regarding the servicing of Federal student loans for borrowers who may be eligible under the recently-issued Public Student Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Waiver. The CFPB announced that it will be closely reviewing student…
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced this week that it is opening an inquiry into “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) services, which have become increasingly popular with online consumers. In a December 16, 2021 statement, the CFPB said that it is looking to “collect information on the risks and…
The CFPB, federal banking agencies, and state regulators are returning to pre-pandemic norms with respect to enforcement and supervision of the mortgage servicing industry. On November 10, 2021, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union…
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its first in-depth report analyzing consumer complaint submission patterns by demographic characteristics. The CFPB’s findings were based on nearly 1 million consumer complaints submitted to the CFPB between 2018 and 2020. The CFPB’s report classified complaints by matching the relevant consumers to U.S….
Debt collectors operating in California may now submit applications for licensure by the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) in compliance with the state’s newly enacted Debt Collection Licensing Act (DCLA). On September 1, 2021, the DFPI announced that it opened its license application for all debt collectors in…
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released an interagency statement on July 20, 2021 that all three agencies will act together to revise their regulations implementing the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The OCC also…
On June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law Juneteenth National Independence Day Act. The enactment of the new Federal holiday was an historic and welcome national event. Yet, the legislation making June 19 a Federal holiday—observed this year by the Federal government on Friday, June 18—was passed swiftly…
On April 1, 2021, the United States Supreme Court resolved a circuit split on what technology constitutes an “automatic telephone dialing system” (ATDS) under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA), 47 U.S.C. § 227 et seq. In the TCPA class action Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid, et al., No….
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a statement on February 23, 2021 addressing compliance deadlines associated with qualified mortgage regulations completed under former Director Kathleen Kraninger. In its statement, the CFPB said that it may amend or revoke the Seasoned Qualified Mortgage (QM) Final Rule and expects to issue…
On January 5, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Taskforce on Federal Consumer Financial Law (Taskforce) issued a final report (Report) with recommendations on how to improve consumer protection in the financial marketplace. In proposing changes to the existing legal and regulatory framework, the Report is centered around five…
On November 10, 2020, the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held a virtual hearing entitled “Oversight of Financial Regulators.” The presenting witnesses were: Randal Quarles, Vice Chair for Supervision of the Federal Reserve System; Brian Brooks, Acting Comptroller of the Currency; Jelena McWilliams, Chairman of the…
On September 29, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), along with more than 50 federal and state law enforcement partners, announced a nationwide law enforcement and outreach initiative designed to protect consumers from phantom debt collection, and abusive and threatening debt collection practices….
On August 31, 2020, the California Legislature passed Assembly Bill No. 1864 (AB-1864), sending the bill to California Governor Gavin Newsom for his expected approval. Below is an overview of some of AB-1864’s key provisions. As LenderLaw Watch reported earlier this year, Governor Newsom’s 2020-2021 Budget Summary proposed expanding the…
On August 18, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a proposed rule to create a new category of loans known as “seasoned” qualified mortgages (Seasoned QMs). This new category of qualified mortgages would require loans to meet certain performance requirements over a 36-month seasoning period, after which the…
On July 17, 2020, a federal judge in Guam refused to vacate her ruling in U.S. v. Government of Guam, et al., Case No. 1:17-00113, which held that sovereign immunity prevented the U.S. government from seeking damages under the Fair Housing Act (FHA) for Guam’s alleged violations of housing rights…
The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently issued a joint statement concerning mortgage loan forbearances under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). The joint statement signals the types of conduct that may become the focus of CFPB and…
On May 6, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, in ACA International v. Healey, Case No. 1:20-cv-10767-RGS, enjoined Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey (AG Healey) from enforcing provisions of the emergency regulation, 940 CMR 35.00, et seq. (Regulation), prohibiting debt collection calls and initiating lawsuits during…