Top Story Lending Related

The U.S. Department of Justice has announced a new program, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Enforcement Support Pilot Program, to support enforcement efforts related to protecting the rights of current and former military personnel as part of the department’s Servicemembers and Veterans Initiative. The new pilot program funds Assistant U.S. Attorney and trial attorney positions to assist with SCRA enforcement, and also designates military judge advocates currently serving as legal assistance attorneys to serve as Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys to support the department’s enforcement efforts related to the SCRA. U.S. Attorneys throughout the country will also be appointing Initiative Liaisons to work with local military and veteran communities.

The CFPB, in partnership with the New York Attorney General, has filed a federal district court complaint against the leaders of a massive debt collection scheme based out of Buffalo, N.Y. The complaint alleges that Douglas MacKinnon and Mark Gray operate a network of companies that harass, threaten, and deceive millions of consumers across the nation into paying inflated debts or amounts they may not owe. The Bureau is seeking to shut down this operation and to obtain compensation for victims and a civil penalty against the companies and partners. The CFPB alleges that the defendants violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The CFPB and the New York Attorney General also allege that the defendants violated the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which prohibits unfair and deceptive acts or practices in the consumer financial marketplace.

The CFPB has posted information on changes to the submission process listed in the Filing Instructions Guide for HMDA data collected in 2017. Beginning with the HMDA data collected in 2017, filers will submit their HMDA data to the CFPB using a web interface referred to as the HMDA Platform. HMDA filers will interact directly with the HMDA Platform to file their HMDA data. The Data Entry Software currently provided by the FFIEC will no longer be available as a method of data entry or data submission.

The OCC has released a list of 33 Community Reinvestment Act performance evaluations that became public during the month of October. Two of the institutions on the list were rated Outstanding, 30 were rated Satisfactory, and one was rated Needs to Improve.

The November 2, 2016, statement of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) indicates the Committee decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 1/4 to 1/2 percent. The Committee judges that the case for an increase in the federal funds rate has continued to strengthen but decided, for the time being, to wait for some further evidence of continued progress toward its objectives. The stance of monetary policy remains accommodative, thereby supporting further improvement in labor market conditions and a return to 2 percent inflation.

The NMLS has announced the annual renewal period for 2017 began November 1, 2016, and ends Saturday, December 31, 2016. According to federal regulations, both institutions and most individual mortgage loan originators (MLOs) must be renewed through NMLS annually. The NMLS Call Center operates M-F 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. ET. Additional information is available on the NMLS's Annual Renewal information page.

The CFPB has released Issue 13 - Fall 2016 of its Supervisory Highlights, in which the Bureau announced its release of procedures for examining reverse mortgage servicers and new procedures for examining student loan servicers. Also included are the Bureau's supervisory observations on automobile loan and lease origination and servicing, debt collection, mortgage origination and student loan servicing, plus four fair lending topics.

The CFPB, in observance of the anniversary of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), has published an article, "What you need to know about the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and how it can help you: Why it was passed and what it is," the first of two articles on ECOA scheduled for the observance.

The FTC has announced that a federal judge has banned from the collection business a group of debt collectors who pretended to be affiliated with the government, and ordered them to pay nearly $11 million, after granting the Federal Trade Commission’s request for summary judgment in a case filed by the agency. The action is part of Operation Collection Protection, a continuing nationwide crackdown on collectors whose illegal tactics include harassing phone calls and false threats of lawsuits and arrest.

Five federal regulatory agencies (FRB, FDIC, NCUA, OCC, and Farm Credit Administration) are requesting comment on a joint notice of proposed rulemaking to implement provisions of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act (Biggert-Waters Act) that require regulated lending institutions to accept certain private flood insurance policies in addition to policies made available by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The federal flood insurance statutes require regulated lending institutions to ensure that flood insurance is purchased in connection with loans secured by improved real property located in areas having special flood hazards. Under the Biggert-Waters Act, regulated lenders must accept, in satisfaction of this mandatory purchase requirement, policies issued by private insurers that satisfy the criteria specified in the Biggert-Waters Act. The proposed rule, which has been submitted for publication in the Federal Register, includes provisions to assist lending institutions in identifying private flood insurance policies they would be required to accept. The proposal also would clarify that lenders retain their discretion to accept private flood insurance policies that do not meet the criteria for mandatory acceptance, provided certain conditions are met. Furthermore, the proposed rule would establish criteria to apply in determining that coverage offered by a mutual aid society provides the type of policy or coverage that qualifies as "flood insurance" for purposes of the federal flood insurance laws. Comments are due 60 days from the date of publication in the Federal Register.

UPDATE: The proposed rule was published at 81 FR 78063 in the Federal Register, with a comment deadline of January 6, 2017.