Top Story Lending Related

Debit and credit card issuers should be aware that customers who are veterans may contact them about being scammed by crooks using a phony telephone line to pose as representatives of the Department of Veterans Affairs' Veterans Choice Program (VCP). The VCP is a VA initiative the allows certain eligible veterans to use approved health care providers outside the VA system. The legitimate program uses a toll-free number starting with 866. According to a Federal Trade Commission alert, the scammers set up a phone line with the same number, starting with 800. When a veteran dials the bogus line, a message reports the veteran is entitled to a rebate if he or she provides a card number. An unauthorized charge is posted to the veteran's card account, and the veteran has to cancel the card.

The CFPB has published [82 FR 22318] in today's Federal Register its request for information on the small business lending market, with a 60-day comment period expiring July 14, 2017. See our earlier Top Story for details.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has published [82 FR 22344] in this morning's Federal Register an invitation for public comment to assist in identifying existing regulations that may be outdated, ineffective, or excessively burdensome, in accordance with Executive Orders 13771, "Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs," and 13777, "Enforcing the Regulatory Reform Agenda." Comments will be received through June 14, 2017.

The OCC will host two workshops at the Inn at Opryland in Nashville, Tennessee, June 20-21, for directors of institutions supervised by the OCC.

• The Credit Risk workshop on June 20 focuses on credit risk within the loan portfolio, such as identifying trends and recognizing problems. The workshop also covers the roles of the board and management, how to stay informed of changes in credit risk, and how to effect change.
• The Operational Risk workshop on June 21 focuses on the key components of operational risk—people, processes and systems. The workshop also covers governance, third-party risk, vendor management, and cybersecurity.

Each workshop is limited to 35 participants.

The Federal Open Market Committee has posted its tentative meeting schedule for 2018:

• January 30-31 (Tuesday-Wednesday)
• March 20-21 (Tuesday-Wednesday)
• May 1-2 (Tuesday-Wednesday)
• June 12-13 (Tuesday-Wednesday)
• July 31-August 1 (Tuesday-Wednesday)
• September 25-26 (Tuesday-Wednesday)
• November 7-8 (Wednesday-Thursday)
• December 18-19 (Tuesday-Wednesday)
• January 29-30, 2019 (Tuesday-Wednesday)

Melvin Watt, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) issued a statement before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, on “The Status of the Housing Finance System After Nine Years of Conservatorship.”

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) has launched a new website dedicated to the NMLS 2.0 initiative to provide updates, engagement opportunities, and progress on the new NMLS.

The Bank of Lake Mills, Lake Mills, Wisconsin, and two institution-affiliated parties (IAPs) have executed settlements with the FDIC for unfair and deceptive practices that violated Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act. As part of the settlement, the bank and the IAPs stipulated to the issuance of respective Orders for Restitution and Orders to Pay Civil Money Penalties The FDIC Orders require restitution of approximately $3 million to harmed consumers, and assess civil money penalties totaling $242,000. The Orders require a restitution plan that covers all past and present borrowers who, from 2013 to 2015, received loans originated by the bank through the IAPs, and were harmed by the practices identified as being unfair or deceptive. For further information, see "Bank of Lake Mills," in our Penalty pages.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has publicized an agreement between Wescom Central Credit Union, based in Pasadena, California, and a married couple, resolving allegations the company denied the couple's mortgage loan application because the wife was on maternity leave. Refusing to provide a mortgage loan or mortgage insurance because a woman is pregnant or on family leave violates the Fair Housing Act's prohibition against sex and familial status discrimination, which includes discrimination against individuals who have or are expecting a child.

The Department of Defense has posted a notice on its MLA website that its MLA verification service will be unavailable on Saturday, May 13, due to planned system maintenance.