Admitting it has received requests from representatives in both the financial services industry and consumer advocacies, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced yesterday via a publication in the Federal Register that it will extend the comment period by 30 days for the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking related to debt collection.
The comment period was due to close on Aug. 19, but that will now be pushed to Sept. 18. Two comments were filed seeking the extension. One, from the American Financial Services Association, the National Consumer Law Center, and the Center For Responsible Lending sought a 90-day extension of the comment period. The other, from Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund, Center for Responsible Lending, Consumer Federation of America, National Association of Consumer Advocates, National Consumer Law Center, Public Citizen, and U.S. PIRG sought a 60-day extension.
The American Financial Services Association was seeking the extension so it could finish a survey of members about the proposed rule, while the consumer groups were looking for more time because they did not have the bandwidth to respond to such a comprehensive proposal in the original 90-day window.
“The Bureau has balanced interested parties’ desire to have additional time to consider the issues raised in the NPRM, gather data, and prepare their responses, with the Bureau’s interest in proceeding expeditiously with the debt collection rulemaking,” it wrote in the Register. “In light of these factors, the Bureau believes that a 30-day extension of the NPRM comment period to September 18, 2019, is appropriate. This extension should allow interested parties more time to prepare responses to the NPRM without delaying the debt collection rulemaking.”