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FDIC Chairman Speaks About Financial Inclusion
On November 7, the Chairman of the FDIC, Martin J Gruenberg, addressed the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) in New York, New York regarding financial inclusion and expanding economic opportunity for the underbanked. In his speech, Gruenberg discussed the agency’s most recent report, FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households, which found that nearly 27 percent of American households are unbanked or underbanked. Gruenberg also highlighted the initiatives the agency has undertaken to address the results of this report, including (i) creating access to “Safe Accounts,” which are electronic transaction accounts with low costs; (ii) conducting research on mobile financial services and how technology can lead to more sustainable banking relationships; and (iii) continuing financial education initiatives with a particular focus on youth savings.
OCC to Host Workshop for Bank Directors in December; FDIC, CFPB Announce Webinar to Discuss Financial Education Resources
On October 23, the OCC announced it will host a workshop December 4-6 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, for directors, senior management team members, and other key executives of OCC-supervised national community banks and federal savings associations. The “Building Blocks for Directors” workshop will (i) focus on the duties and cores responsibilities of directors and management; (ii) discuss major laws and regulations; and (iii) provide insight on the examination process.
Also on October 23, the FDIC and CFPB announced they will co-host a webinar on November 15 to discuss financial education resources designed to help people with disabilities make informed financial decisions. Topics of discussion will include recent enhancements to the FDIC’s Money Smart curriculum and the CFPB’s Your Money, Your Goals toolkit.
FTC to Host Military Consumer Financial Workshop
On July 19, the FTC will host a free public workshop in San Antonio, entitled 2017 Military Consumer Financial Workshop: Protecting Those Who Protect Our Nation, to educate military consumers on financial issues and scams that they may face.
The workshop with consist of five panel discussions led by FTC personnel as well as military consumer advocates, attorneys, legal services clinics, industry representatives, and government agencies. The panels will include the following topics:
- auto purchase, financing, and leasing;
- lending including student loans and installment loans;
- debt collection;
- legal rights and remedies; and
- financial literacy and capability.
Additionally, the workshop will include presentations on online promotions and protecting sensitive information, as well as encouraging financial readiness along with financial resources for military consumers.
The FTC will hold the workshop at Trinity University in the Chapman Auditorium beginning at 8:30 am and preregistration is not required.
Cordray Discusses Youth Financial Education, CFPB Responsibilities
Recently, CFPB Director Richard Cordray delivered prepared remarks at the Financial Literacy and Education Commission Meeting in Washington, DC on May 24 and at the People and Places Conference in Arlington, VA on May 31.
Financial Literacy and Education Commission (Commission). Coordinated by the Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Security, the Commission presented results from the 2015 Programme for International Student Assessment study on financial education in the U.S. and how it compares to other countries. Cordray’s opening remarks stressed the-importance of providing financial resources and educational tools empowering young people and outlined efforts the CFPB has underway, such as the Youth Financial Education resource page, the online Money as You Grow tool, and other community outreach education programs.
People and Places Conference. A keynote speaker at the conference, Cordray outlined the three main components of the CFPB’s work: (i) supervision and enforcement; (ii) implementing common-sense rules; and (iii) hearing and addressing consumer complaints to help keep companies accountable. Regarding supervisory and enforcement actions, Cordray stated that the Bureau’s activities serve to help change institutions’ practices for the better by (i) providing consistent supervision; (ii) initiating public enforcement actions to serve as a deterrent to “bad behavior”; and (iii) upholding “laws that ban unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices.” Cordray asserted that by setting expectations financial institutions must meet in their own compliance work, similar violations can be avoided. Cordray spoke next about the need to establish “common-sense rules of the road” in order to protect consumers. He used the mortgage industry as an example of how the Bureau responded to Congress’s directive for developing “much-needed reforms” by “implementing rules to govern underwriting, servicing, and loan originator compensation” and “temper[ed] these regulations for small creditors so as to ease regulatory burdens on community banks and credit unions.” Furthermore, Cordray stated the Bureau’s ability to receive and process consumer complaints is crucial to identifying, understanding, and prioritizing problems.
Florida Attorney General Rolls Out Military Consumer Protection Program; CFPB Publishes Annual Servicemember Report
On May 17, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced a new consumer protection program designed to spread awareness and help prevent deceptive business practices affecting military and veteran communities. The Military and Veterans Assistance Program (MVAP) will provide resources and information to consumers on emerging scams and other consumer protection related issues, as well as encourage open communication among local, state, and federal partners to help ensure complaints are handled appropriately.
On May 16, the CFPB’s Office of Servicemember Affairs (OSA) published its fifth annual servicemember report, The Office of Servicemember Affairs: Charting our course through the military lifecycle, and a follow-up blog post outlining the work the office has conducted over the past five years and the work it intends to do in the future. The structure of the report—designed to be presented within the construct of the “military lifecycle”—presents the ways that “many common and some uniquely-military consumer issues . . . fit within that continuum.” Under the Dodd-Frank Act, OSA monitors servicemember complaints about consumer financial products or services and coordinates with the efforts of federal and state agencies to improve measures and provide assistance. As of April 1, 2017, the OSA reports that it has handled approximately 74,800 complaints submitted by servicemembers, veterans, and their families since July 2011, of which 42 percent related to debt collection, 18 percent to mortgages, and 11 percent to credit reporting. In total, the OSA claims it has provided approximately $3.3 million in monetary relief to military consumers who submitted complaints to the CFPB.
FTC Launches New Website for Small Businesses, Provides Resources to Avoid Scams and Cyberattacks
On May 9, the FTC announced the launch of its new website—ftc.gov/SmallBusiness—designed to provide useful information so small businesses can protect their networks and customer data from scams and cyberattacks. The website offers specific guidance such as the Small Business Computer Security Basics guide, which shares computer security basics to help companies: (i) protect their files and devices; (ii) train employees to think twice before sharing the business’s account information; (iii) keep their wireless networks protected; and (iv) respond to data breaches. Information on other cyber threats such as ransomware and phishing schemes that target small businesses is also provided. According to the FTC, the U.S. Small Business Administration reports that “there are more than 28 million small businesses nationwide” that are at risk, many of which lack the resources larger companies have to spend on cybersecurity. Further, the FTC noted that Symantec Corp. found that “the percentage of spear-phishing attacks targeting small business rose dramatically from 18 percent to 43 percent between 2011 and 2015.”
CFPB Releases “Core Outcomes” for Financial Empowerment Programs
On April 27, the CFPB announced in a blog post its release of a core set of financial outcomes designed to help human services organizations integrate financial empowerment and capability initiatives into their programs. Strategies include implementing financial education tools and financial counseling or coaching. In its April report, Tracking Success in Financial Capability and Empowerment Programs, the Bureau identified the following five core outcomes to help consumers improve their financial capabilities: (i) planning and goals; (ii) savings; (iii) bill payment; (iv) credit profile; and (v) financial well-being. According to the report, which assists the financial empowerment field in encouraging commonality in outcomes, core outcomes are designed to:
- “help inform and guide service delivery organizations and those who design, fund, or evaluate service programs as they assess or document the value of integrating financial capability and empowerment strategies into the delivery of human services programs”;
- “provide a suggested core set of common outcomes to measure for the financial empowerment field”;
- “augment, not displace, current programmatic outcomes and accommodate a broad range of different program types”; and
- “help provide consistency across programs by creating a common framework and language for demonstrating success for the provision of financial empowerment services as an element of other human services programs.”
According to the Bureau’s Office of Financial Empowerment, it began identifying common core outcomes with input from multiple financial empowerment practitioners and researchers to “improve the financial well-being of “lower-income and economically vulnerable consumers.”
CFPB Provides Resources for Consumers During Money Smart Week
On April 22, the CFPB highlighted a series of consumer education resources as part of its participation in Money Smart Week—(April 22-29)—and Financial Literacy Month. The CFPB blog post is here. Among the financial decision-making resources are: (i) Ask CFPB—an online tool that the Bureau states will provide “clear, unbiased” answers to common financial questions; (ii) Owning a Home—a tool that provides resources for homebuyers; and (iii) Money as You Grow—a resource center where parents can find activities and conversation starters to help children build money skills. In addition, the Bureau also advised consumers that there are numerous free financial education classes and seminars conducted by local and regional organizations covering a variety of money-management topics such as buying a house, credit management, saving for college, and financing retirement. Consumers should visit Money Smart Week to find events and online resources.
April is National Financial Capability Month; FDIC Highlights Free Financial Education Tools
On April 3, the FDIC released a list of its free financial education tools in recognition of National Financial Capability Month. The tools were developed to help educate people of all ages and expand their financial knowledge and skills. A few of the offered tools include: (i) Money Smart age-appropriate, multi-lingual financial education materials; (ii) Money Smart for Small Businesses for new entrepreneurs; (iii) Money Smart News featuring resources for financial educators; and (iv) FDIC Consumer News, which offers practical guidance on ways to use financial services.
Supreme Court Questions State Law Restricting Consumer Price Displays
On March 29, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated and remanded a lawsuit challenging a New York law—N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 518—which provides that no seller “may impose a surcharge on a holder who elects to use a credit card” instead of a cash payments. (See Expressions Hair Design, et al. v Schneiderman.) Plaintiffs, a group of New York merchants, argued that the law violates the First Amendment by regulating how they communicate their prices. Plaintiffs further alleged that the law is unconstitutionally vague. In its defense, the State of New York asserted that the law merely prevents unfair profiteering, consumer anger, and deceptive sales tactics. After the district court ruled in favor of the Plaintiffs, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated the judgment with instructions to dismiss. The Second Circuit appellate panel reasoned that the law is a “price regulation” that regulates conduct rather than speech and, as such, is immune from scrutiny under the First Amendment.
Writing for the Supreme Court—which was unanimous in the judgment—Chief Justice John G. Roberts disagreed with the Second Circuit panel’s conclusion that the law regulates conduct alone. Specifically, Justice Roberts notes in his opinion that Section 518 “is not like a typical price regulation,” which regulates a seller’s conduct by dictating how much to charge for an item. Rather, the Chief Justice explained, the law regulates “how sellers may communicate their prices.” Notably, the majority opinion declined to delve into the First Amendment issues raised by the parties, including whether the law is a valid commercial speech regulation, citing its status as “a court of review, not of first view.”
Justice Stephen G. Breyer filed a concurring opinion in which he noted that because the law’s interpretation is unclear, on remand, the Second Circuit should ask New York's highest court to clarify it, as this “is a matter of state law.” Justice Sonia M. Sotomayor, joined by Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., also filed a concurring opinion in which she called the majority's ruling a “quarter-loaf outcome,” because the holding failed to address whether the law unconstitutionally restricts speech. The Second Circuit erred by not certifying the question of the statute's interpretation to the N.Y. Court of Appeals “and this Court errs by not correcting it,” Sotomayor reasoned. The Justice indicated that she would have “vacate[d] the judgment below and remand with instructions to” certify the question for a definitive interpretation.