As of 5:58pm ET yesterday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was officially on the clock for releasing its proposed debt collection rule.
The CFPB yesterday released its annual report about how it enforced the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and right there on Page 2 of the report, it says, “The Bureau will issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking relating to debt collection in spring 2019. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking will address such issues as communication practices and consumer disclosures.” Spring started yesterday in North America so the CFPB has 90 days to meet its deadline for releasing the proposed rule.
In the report, the CFPB breaks down debt collection complaints it has received, provides an overview of its FDCPA supervision activities, the amicus briefs it has filed related to FDCPA cases, summarizes its enforcement actions taken in relation to the FDCPA, details its education and outreach initiatives, and discusses its rule making, research, and policy efforts.
Enforcement and oversight of the FDCPA fall to the CFPB and the Federal Trade Commission, which work together under a Memorandum of Understanding.
More than 25% of the 81,500 complaints filed with the CFPB in 2018 were referred to other federal regulators because the company being complained about was not regulated by the CFPB. Another 11% of complaints were either incomplete, pending with the consumer, or with the CFPB itself. Companies responded to 95% of the remaining 51,700 complaints, according to the report. About 1% of those complaints were classified as “administrative response,” meaning further review by the CFPB was required.
