The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued new regulations on topics including confidentiality protections and information collection:
CFPB Strengthening Confidentiality Protections
77 FR 15286
On March 15, 2012, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a proposed amendment to 12 CFR Part 1070, subpart D that will reinforce the confidentiality protections for supervised entities that provide information to the CFPB. The proposed amendments strengthen the prior regulation and “clarify that it is intended to be a rule with the force and effect of law.” The rule is intended to govern all federal and state claims that an entity supervised by the CFPB has waived privilege by providing information to the CFPB.
Amending Regulation Z
77 FR 21875
On April 16, 2012, the CFPB issued a proposed rule to amend Regulation Z of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA). Regulation Z currently limits the total amount of fees that a credit card issuer may require a consumer to pay for an account to 25% of the credit limit in effect when the account is opened. The proposed rule would apply the limit only during the first year after account opening.
Collecting Information on Payday Lending
77 FR 18793
On March 28, 2012, the CFPB posted a notice of its field hearing on payday lending, held in the Birmingham field location. The agency requested further public feedback on issues that came up during the field hearing including the impact of payday loans on consumers, marketing of these loans, and the effect of how the loan is provided to the consumer.
Information Collection
77 FR 18795
On March 28, 2012, the CFPB announced that it would commission a yearly consumer research survey in order to “better understand the attitudes, understanding, and behaviors of American adult consumers around issues of consumer finance.” The first year survey would create a baseline, and then subsequent surveys would build off the baseline results.
77 FR 18794
On March 28, 2012, the CFPB announced its intention to commission periodic user testing of information the Bureau provides to consumers to help them achieve their financial goals and to better understand financial products and services available to them. This information collection will help the CFPB understand which information communication methods are best for consumer information.
77 FR 18793
On March 28, 2012, the CFPB proposed quantitative testing of the integrated disclosures once they have been published. This quantitative testing would examine whether integrated disclosures actually help consumers understand the terms of their mortgage loans.