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FDIC releases September enforcement actions
On October 29, the FDIC released a list of administrative enforcement actions taken against banks and individuals in September. During the month, the FDIC made public six orders consisting of “one Consent Order, two terminations of Consent Orders, one Order to Pay Civil Money Penalty, one Order Terminating Decision and Order to Cease and Desist, and one Order of Termination of Insurance.” Among the orders is an order to pay a civil money penalty imposed against a Nebraska-based bank related to alleged violations of the Flood Disaster Protection Act. Among other things, the FDIC claimed that the bank “[m]ade, increased, extended, or renewed loans secured by a building or mobile home located or to be located in a special flood hazard area without requiring that the collateral be covered by flood insurance,” and also allegedly “[f]ailed to comply with proper procedures for force-placing flood insurance in instances where the collateral was not covered by flood insurance at some time during the term of the loan.” The order requires the payment of a $24,000 civil money penalty.
The FDIC also issued a consent order to a Utah-based bank, which requires the bank to take measures to correct current alleged violations (and prevent future violations) of TILA, RESPA, E-Sign Act, ECOA, CRA, and TISA, as well as the statutes’ implementing regulations. The bank neither admitted nor denied the alleged violations but agreed to, among other things, develop a sound risk-based compliance program and implement an effective training program to ensure compliance.
CFPB adjusts annual dollar threshold for Regulation Z, CLA
On October 25, the CFPB announced the annual dollar threshold adjustments that govern the application of Regulation Z (Truth in Lending Act). The final rule revises the dollar amounts, where appropriate, for provisions implementing TILA and amendments to TILA, including under the CARD Act, the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1994 (HOEPA), and Dodd-Frank. Each year the thresholds must be readjusted based on the annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), which took effect June 1. Effective January 1, 2022, the threshold that triggers requirements to disclose minimum interest charges for open-end consumer credit plans under TILA will remain unchanged at $1.00. The adjusted dollar amount for a safe harbor for a first violation penalty fee will increase to $30 in 2022, and the adjusted dollar amount for a safe harbor for a subsequent violation penalty fee will increase to $41 for open-end consumer credit plans under the CARD Act amendments to TILA. With respect to HOEPA, the adjusted total loan amount threshold for high-cost mortgages in 2022 will be $22,969, whereas the adjusted points and fees dollar trigger for high-cost mortgages will be $1,148. The final rule also specifies 2022 pricing thresholds for the spread between a qualified mortgage’s annual percentage rate and the average prime offer rate, and identifies points and fees limits for all categories of qualified mortgages.
Additionally, the Bureau and the Federal Reserve Board finalized the annual dollar threshold adjustment that governs the application of the Consumer Leasing Act (Regulation M), as required by the Dodd-Frank Act. The exemption threshold for 2022, based on the annual percentage increase in the CPI-W, will increase from $58,300 to $61,000.
CFPB urged to regulate fee-based EWA products as credit subject to TILA
On October 12, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra received a letter from “96 consumer, labor, civil rights, legal services, faith, community and financial organizations and academics,” which urged the Bureau to rescind its earned wage access (EWA) advisory opinion and sandbox approval, and requested that the Bureau regulate fee-based EWA products as credit subject to TILA. As previously covered by InfoBytes, last November the Bureau issued an advisory opinion on EWA products to address the uncertainty as to whether EWA providers that meet short-term liquidity needs that arise between paychecks “are offering or extending ‘credit’” under Regulation Z, which implements TILA. The advisory opinion stated that ““a Covered EWA Program does not involve the offering or extension of ‘credit,’” and noted that the “totality of circumstances of a Covered EWA Program supports that these programs differ in kind from products the Bureau would generally consider to be credit.” In December, the Bureau approved a compliance assistance sandbox application, which confirmed that a financial services company’s EWA program did not involve the offering or extension of “credit” as defined by section 1026.2(a)(14) of Regulation Z. The Bureau noted that various features often found in credit transactions were absent from the company’s program, and issued a two-year approval order, which provides the company a safe harbor from liability under TILA and Regulation Z, to the fullest extent permitted by section 130(f) as to any act done in good faith compliance with the order. (Covered by InfoBytes here).
The letter asserted that “[r]egardless of how they are structured, the essence of virtually all of these programs is that a third party advances funds to the consumer before the consumer’s regular payday and is repaid later in some fashion out of the paycheck. That is a loan. Methods to verify that the consumer has earned wages coming to them are simply a form of underwriting or security. . . . Similarly, the involvement of the employer or the use of payroll deduction does not mean that an advance is not a loan.” The letter raised several concerns, including that the Bureau’s position which views EWA products “as something other than loans leads to evasions of federal credit laws, such as [TILA], and of state laws, in particular usury laws.” Moreover, the letter stressed that this reasoning could have an impact on fair lending laws and “could be used in an attempt to weaken the scope of ECOA and its protections against discrimination against communities of color and other protected classes.” The letter stressed that asking for EWA products to be treated as credit does not mean they should not exist, but rather that the Bureau should examine fee-based EWA providers under its payday lending supervisory authority.
California authorizes prepaid accounts to accept publicly administered funds provided no overdraft fees
On October 5, the California governor signed SB 497, which, among other things, amends the definition of a “qualifying account” use for the purposes of depositing certain publicly administered funds. The amendment eliminates prepaid card accounts from the definition of “qualifying account,” and instead authorizes “a prepaid account or a demand deposit or savings account offered by or through an entity other than an insured depository financial institution, as specified, that is not attached to an automatic credit or overdraft feature, unless the credit or overdraft feature has no fee, charge, or cost, or it complies with the requirements for consumer credit under the federal Truth in Lending Act.” Specifically, persons or entities that are not insured depository financial institutions but who offer, maintain, or manage non-“qualifying accounts” are prohibited from soliciting, accepting, or facilitating the direct deposit of the publicly administered funds into the accounts.
CFPB issues semi-annual report to Congress
On October 8, the CFPB issued its semi-annual report to Congress covering the Bureau’s work from October 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021. The report, which is required by Dodd-Frank, addresses, among other things, the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on consumer credit, significant rules and orders adopted by the Bureau, consumer complaints, and various supervisory and enforcement actions taken by the Bureau. In his opening letter, Director Dave Uejio discusses the Bureau’s efforts to increase racial equity in the marketplace and to mitigate the financial effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on consumers, including measures such as reinstituted regular public reporting, developing Prioritized Assessments to protect consumers from elevated risks of harm related to the pandemic, and numerous enforcement actions with claims or findings of various violations. Uejio also notes that communities of color, particularly Black and Hispanic communities, have disproportionately experienced the health and economic effects of the pandemic, and states that the Bureau is utilizing “all [of its] tools to ensure that all communities, of all races and economic backgrounds, can participate in and benefit from the nation’s economic recovery.”
Among other topics, the report highlights two publications by the Bureau: one focusing on the TRID Integrated Disclosure Rule (covered by InfoBytes here), and another focusing on credit record trends for young enlisted servicemembers during the first year after separation (covered by InfoBytes here). The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on consumer credit are also discussed, as are the results from the Bureau’s Making Ends Meet Survey. In addition to these areas of focus, the report notes the issuance of several significant notices of proposed rulemaking related to remittance transfers, debt collection practices, the transition from LIBOR, and qualified mortgage definitions under TILA. Multiple final rules were also issued concerning Truth in Lending Act (Regulation Z); remittance transfers; and payday, vehicle, title, and certain high-cost installment loans. Several other rules and initiatives undertaken during the reporting period are also highlighted.
CFPB requests comments on credit card data collections
On September 21, the CFPB published a notice and request for comments in the Federal Register seeking input on revisions to an existing, currently approved information collection, related to reporting terms of credit card plans and consumer and college credit card agreements. The notice relates to credit card data collected by the Bureau as required under TILA regarding agreements between issuers and consumers under a credit card account for open-end consumer credit plans, as well as “any college credit card agreements to which the issuer is a party and certain additional information regarding those agreements.” The data collections will enable the Bureau to provide “a centralized and searchable repository for consumer and college credit card agreements and information regarding the arrangements between financial institutions and institutions of higher education.” Comments must be received by October 21.
CFPB alleges online lender violated 2016 consent order
On September 8, the CFPB filed a complaint against a California-based online lender (defendant) for allegedly violating the terms of a 2016 consent order related to false claims about their lending program. As previously covered by InfoBytes, the 2016 consent order alleged the defendant engaged in deceptive practices by misrepresenting, among other things, the fees charged, the loan products that were available to consumers, and whether the loans would be reported to credit reporting companies in violation of the CFPA, TILA, and Regulation Z. According to the September 8 complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, the defendants continued with much of the same illegal and deceptive marketing that was prohibited by the 2016 consent order. Among other things, the complaint alleges that the defendants violated the terms of the consent order and various laws by: (i) deceiving consumers regarding the benefits of repeat borrowing; and (ii) failing to provide timely and accurate adverse-action notices. The Bureau seeks injunctive relief, damages, consumer restitution, disgorgement, and civil money penalties. In addition, the Bureau asks the court to permanently enjoin the defendants from committing future violations of the CFPA, the Bureau’s 2016 Consent Order, ECOA, or any provision of “Federal consumer financial law.”
Fed extends TILA disclosure requirements
On September 1, the Federal Reserve Board adopted a proposal to extend the recordkeeping and disclosure requirements associated with the TILA, implemented by Regulation Z for three years, with revision. While Dodd-Frank transferred rule-writing authority for Fed-supervision institutions under Regulation Z to the CFPB, the Fed is taking action to “minimize burden on small entities through tailored supervision, including through a risk-focused consumer compliance supervision program and an examination frequency policy that provides for lengthened time between examinations for institutions with a lower risk profile.” As previously covered by InfoBytes, the Board proposed in April to revise FR Z (OMB No. 7100-0199) to: (i) include burden connected to disclosure requirements in “rules issued by the Bureau since the Board’s last Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) submission, as well as for one information collection for which the Bureau estimates burden” but the Board formerly did not; (ii) break out and clarify “burden estimates” that were formerly consolidated; and (iii) eliminate burden associated with some requirements due to the Bureau accounting for burden for the entire industry, or because the burden is now deemed a part of an institution’s usual and customary business practices. The revisions will be implemented as proposed and are effective immediately.
CFPB settles with ISA provider on unfair practices
On September 7, the CFPB announced a settlement with a Virginia-based non-profit income share agreement (ISA) provider, and its affiliated companies, to resolve allegations that the company engaged in deceptive acts with respect to its ISAs product to finance postsecondary education, in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act, among other things. The CFPB alleged that the company engaged in unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices by misrepresenting that its ISAs are not loans and do not create debt, failing to provide certain required disclosures, and imposing unlawful prepayment penalties on private education loans.
Under the terms of the consent order, the company is required to: (i) cease stating that its ISAs are not loans or do not create debt for consumers; (ii) provide the disclosures required by the Truth in Lending Act and its implementing Regulation Z for closed-end credit; (iii) “continue their practice of not objecting to any discharge of a student’s ISA in bankruptcy”; and (iv) reform its ISA contracts to remove prepayment penalties on private education loans and, for some ISAs, recalculate the payment caps to eliminate the prepayment penalty. The order does not impose a civil money penalty.
CFPB releases TILA and CARD Act specifications
On August 20, the CFPB released new technical specifications regarding credit card agreement and data submission compliance requirements under TILA and the CARD Act (Regulation Z). Credit card issuers will utilize the Bureau’s website to submit: (i) Terms of Credit Card Plans (TCCP) Survey data (for the deadline of February 14, 2022); (ii) quarterly credit card agreement submissions (for the deadline of January 31, 2022); and (iii) annual reports connected to college credit card marketing agreements and data (for the deadline of March 31, 2022). According to the announcement, for the most recent TCCP Survey cycle that started on January 31, 83 percent of TCCP Survey submissions were made via the Bureau’s “Collect” website on a voluntary basis, which simplified the Survey submission process in a number of ways, including by minimizing confusing, irrelevant, or duplicative questions and providing an “audit trail” to track submissions. In addition, the Bureau understands Collect to be faster both for issuers and for Bureau processing, which “has led to the faster posting of the TCCP Survey results” and enhances the “public’s ability to use the data in a timely manner.” The Bureau believes that these benefits “would be increased if all TCCP Survey respondents used Collect, and that any additional burden on Survey respondents as a result of using Collect would be minimal.” As previously covered by InfoBytes, the CFPB released the final rule revising the dollar amounts for provisions implementing the TILA and amendments to TILA, including CARD Act, the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1994, and Dodd-Frank’s ability-to-repay and qualified mortgage provisions. The recently released rule took effect upon publication in the Federal Register.