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Sat May 25, 2013
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) made public that it means to clean up and clarify rules from 18 consumer financial laws it arrogated from seven federal regulatory agencies in July.
In a notice it published in the Federal Register, the bureau asked for recommendations from the public on which rules it should clarify, modify, and eliminate if necessary, including “unduly burdensome… or unnecessary provisions.”
By going live on schedule in July, the CFPB picked up rulemaking authority and jurisdiction from several agencies, including the Federal Reserve, FDIC, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, HUD, and the now-defunct Office of Thrift Supervision.
Among others, the laws and rules associated with these laws included the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA),
Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), and Truth-in-Lending Act (TILA).
“Our goal is to make it easier for banks, credit unions and others to follow the rules,” Raj Date, Special de facto head of the CFPB, said in a statement.
Justifying the announcement, the CFPB noted differences in the ways lenders disclosed costs of credit before lawmakers adopted TILA, which now mandates a universal method for disclosures.
It mentioned the RESPA in the same vein, citing the role of the Dodd-Frank Act in clarifying costs between TILA and the latter law.
“We’re asking the public to help us identify and prioritize concrete ways that we can streamline the regulations we inherited so that they work better for consumers and the firms that serve them,” he added.
More than half of the rules and modifications for rules required by Dodd-Frank still need writing, with the deadline for these regulations in effect next year.
The Federal Reserve delayed rulemaking for several laws earlier this year when it became clear that regulators like the CFPB needed more time to consult with the public, develop draft rules, and perform economic impact analyses.
The CFPB will receive comments from the public on the proposed rule over the course of the next 90 days.
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