On May 2, 2022, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed SB 470, which amends provisions of Georgia’s banking laws relating to the denial or revocation of a mortgage license or registration due to certain felony convictions. SB 470 will reduce the impact on mortgage companies as a result of Georgia’s existing prohibition on the employment of
On May 5, 2022, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (collectively the agencies) issued a joint notice of proposed rulemaking (the Proposed CRA Rule) that proposes changes to the way the agencies evaluate a bank’s performance under the
On Tuesday, November 16, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) issued a request for information seeking input on rules implementing the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (“HMDA”), to evaluate whether the rules currently meet HMDA’s stated goals. HMDA, originally enacted in 1975, requires qualifying lenders to collect, report, and disclose data about originations and purchases
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has been busy over the last few months laying out what appears to be a broad regulatory agenda. As discussed in this blog, the Bureau has issued an industry notice emphasizing industry preparedness related to COVID-19 forbearance plans, issued proposed COVID-19-related amendments to the Mortgage Servicing Rules, suggested
On April 1, 2021, FEMA released its highly anticipated flood insurance rating methodology, Risk Rating 2.0-Equity in Action.
FEMA first announced “Risk Rating 2.0-Equity in Action” in March 2019 as an effort to improve flood maps and offer rates that are fair, easy to understand, and more aligned with a property’s unique flood risks. The
On March 31, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rescinded seven recent policy statements and one bulletin in an effort to ensure compliance with consumer protection laws and reinforce its supervisory and enforcement authority. These rescissions are effective April 1, 2021.
The policy statements, which were issued between March 26 through June 3, 2020,
On January 20, 2021, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released guidance clarifying its definition of the term “lawful residency.” Under the updated guidance, HUD makes clear that individuals classified under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) and are legally permitted to
The New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) has issued a bulletin on climate change and financial risks to the financial institutions and insurance companies it supervises regarding the impact of climate change on those institutions. DFS asserts that “[f]inancial risks from climate change are unprecedented” and notes a warning from the Bank for International
On November 10, 2020, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a proposed amendment to Federal Housing Administration (FHA) regulations that would allow lenders to accept private flood insurance policies on FHA-insured properties located in Special Flood Hazard Areas. HUD will accept comments for 60 days following the date the proposed rule,
On October 24, 2020, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) final rule on the implementation of the Fair Housing Act’s disparate impact standard was scheduled to become effective. That effective date was short lived: on October 25, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts entered a preliminary injunction staying