adminWashington, D.C. and Hill sources close to the LSCU have learned what is next on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) docket. Among items on the agenda are rules about payday lending, which will be issued soon, but probably not by the end of the month as has been reported in the media. CFPB director Richard Cordray is very hands-on in tailoring the rule, which is expected to be more than 1,000 pages and is being managed by a small internal working group. They are said to be taking into consideration credit union concerns about the complexity of disclosures and other requirements.
Also of note, third-party debt collection regulation will be out by year-end. The CFPB reiterates that it is a prelude to a “first-party” debt collection reg that will directly impact financial institution collection departments. That first-party regulation will be proposed in the first six months of 2018.
An overdraft regulation is planned to be proposed in the first six months of 2018, as well. CFPB staff says there is a “unanimous opinion inside the building” that a strong regulation is needed.
Regarding Equifax, CFPB’s first line of attack will be on UDAAP (Unfair, Deceptive or Abusive Acts or Practices). According to staff, they don’t have authority to pursue Equifax outside of that regulation. CFPB staff does say that they feel vindicated on the arbitration issue, in part due to Equifax, and are confident Congress will not repeal their rule.
