Mayer Brown is pleased to provide the latest edition of its UDAAP Round-Up. This newsletter is designed to provide readers with a periodic resource to stay abreast of federal activities regarding the prohibition on unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices in the consumer financial services space. In this edition, we cover notable policy
Supreme Court Limits Scope of TCPA
Businesses that place phone calls or send text messages to consumers may find some relief in a recent United States Supreme Court decision that limits the applicability of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). The TCPA prohibits any person from placing phone calls (including text messages) to a wireless number using an automated telephone dialing
Holding Out for the HEROES – New Relief for Veterans and Servicemembers
On May 15, 2020, the House of Representatives passed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act (H.R. 6800, or the “HEROES Act”). The legislation is a controversial behemoth. It would provide another round of stimulus checks and student loan forgiveness, impose a 12-month eviction moratorium, expand mortgage forbearance relief, provide a
FHFA Steps Up Its PACE
The Federal Housing Finance Agency is continuing to consider how Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks should address Property Assessed Clean Energy (“PACE”) programs. PACE programs are established by state and local governments to allow homeowners to finance energy-efficient projects through special property tax assessments. The obligation to repay results, in
CFPB Seeks Input for PACE Financing Regulations
Congress amended the Truth in Lending Act in May 2018 by directing the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau to prescribe ability-to-repay regulations with respect to Property Assessed Clean Energy (“PACE”) financing. PACE financing helps homeowners cover the costs of home improvements, which financing results in a tax assessment on the consumer’s property. Ability-to-repay regulations, which TILA
CFPB Proposal for No-Action Letters and New Product Sandbox
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently proposed amendments to its earlier policy for issuing no-action letters, and proposed a process for participating in a so-called regulatory “sandbox,” which would provide certainty in or exemptions from complying with certain federal consumer protection laws. Comments on the proposals are due by February 19, 2019.
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FHA Changes Course on PACE Obligations
For most of 2017, the Trump Administration was quiet with regard to the Federal Housing Administration (“FHA”) loan program. However, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) recently offered some relief to lenders and servicers of FHA-insured loans. Through Mortgagee Letter 2017-18, HUD ended its policy of allowing FHA insurance for mortgage loans secured by properties encumbered with Property Assessed Clean Energy (“PACE”) obligations. FHA’s new policy prohibiting PACE obligations in connection with FHA-insured loans, which becomes effective for loans with FHA case numbers issued on or after January 7, 2018, reverses Mortgagee Letter 2016-11, a short-lived Obama era policy that permitted lenders to originate FHA-insured loans involving PACE obligations.
PACE loans provide homeowners an alternative to traditional financing for energy efficient home improvements such as solar panels, insulation, water conservation projects, and HVAC systems. Instead of funding the home improvements through loans, the borrower pays through special property tax assessments. PACE financing does not follow the standard review of a borrower’s income, debt, and FICO score, but rather is based on the borrower’s equity in the home and the mortgage or property tax payment history. Many states and municipalities passed legislation implementing a PACE program and establishing their own terms and conditions for PACE loans. Homeowners voluntarily sign up for PACE financing through private companies, which often offer PACE through a network of approved dealers and installers. The PACE loan is secured by a property tax lien, often with terms of up to twenty years, which takes priority over both existing and future mortgages on the property.
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CFPB Calls for Comment on Alternative Data
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) announced a Request for Information (“RFI”) about alternative data on February 16, 2017, seeking insights into the benefits and risks of using unconventional financial data in assessing a consumer’s creditworthiness. On the same day, the CFPB held a hearing in Charleston, West Virginia, inviting consumer groups, industry representatives, and others to comment on the use of alternative data.
The CFPB estimates that 45 million Americans have difficulty getting a loan under traditional underwriting criteria, because they do not have a sufficient credit history. According to the CFPB, the use of alternative data may support those Americans’ creditworthiness and allow them better access to financing at more affordable rates. Alternative data includes sources such as timely payment of rent, utilities, or medical bills, as well as bank deposit records, and even internet searches or social media information—data that credit bureaus do not traditionally consider. However, a consumer who lacks a credit history but who makes timely rent and utility payments may be as likely to repay a loan as another consumer with a higher credit score.
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Two-for-One Executive Order on Reducing Regulation Delegates Implementation to OMB
Two-for-one is harder than it sounds. President Trump’s recently-issued executive order on reducing regulations, requiring the repeal of two regulations for each new one issued, provided agencies with precious little guidance. According to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the executive order applies only to “significant regulatory actions” of executive agencies (not independent
Moving On: Core Principles for Dodd-Frank Reform Omit Mention of Financial Crisis
Following his campaign promise to dismantle the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank”), Donald Trump issued an Executive Order on February 3, 2017 that set out “Core Principles” for regulating the financial system. Trump proclaimed that his administration would be “doing a big number on Dodd-Frank,” yet his recent Executive Order on Core Principles appears to be more of a tempered call for analysis and review rather than an outright demolition of existing financial regulations, especially when read in light of the administration’s more drastic requirement that Executive agencies must eliminate two existing regulations for each new one that it issues.
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