Mortgage Law Blog, LLC

The Federal Trade Commission has updated the fees charged for accessing the National Do Not Call Registry. The update is designed to conform the rules with legislative changes in the Do-Not-Call Registry Fee Extension Act of 2007.

The agency indicated the changes are technical only, and public comment is not being solicited.

The agency’s summary of the changes generally states:

To comply with the Do-Not-Call Registry Fee Extension Act of 2007 (Pub. L. 110-188, 122 Stat. 635) (“Act”), the Commission is revising the Final Amended Fee Rule in the following manner: The revised rule decreases the annual fee for access to the Registry for each area code of data to $54 per area code, or $27 per area code of data during the second six months of an entity’s annual subscription period. The maximum amount that would be charged to any single entity for accessing area codes of data is decreased to $14,850. The revised rule retains the provisions regarding free access to the first five area codes of data by all entities, as well as free access by “exempt” organizations. As required by the Act, it expands the definition of “exempt” organizations to include any person permitted to access, but not required to access, the do-not-call registry, not only under the TSR, the Federal Communication Commission’s do-not-call rules found at 47 CFR 64.1200, or any other Federal law, but also under any other Federal regulation.

Additionally, in accordance with the Act, beginning after fiscal year 2009, the dollar amounts charged shall be increased by an amount equal to the amounts specified in the Final Amended Fee Rule, whichever fee is applicable, multiplied by the percentage (if any) by which the average of the monthly consumer price index (for all urban consumers published by the Department of Labor) (“CPI”) for the most recently ended 12-month period ending on June 30 exceeds the CPI for the 12- month period ending June 30, 2008. Any increase shall be rounded to the nearest dollar. There shall be no increase in the dollar amounts if the change in the CPI is less than 1 percent. The adjustments to the applicable fees, if any, shall be published in the Federal Register no later than September 1 of each year.

For a full copy of the issuance, please click here.

Tags: Do Not Call/Fax or Email, Federal Trade Commission, Legislation, Mortgage Banking - General by the Editor
No Comments »

On May 19, 2008, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve and the Federal Trade Commission jointly issued proposed rules designed to implement the risk-based pricing provisions in section 311 of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003.  See 73 Fed. Reg. 28,966.

The proposal included model forms that creditors could use to comply with the requirements of the proposed rules. 

Mortgage Law Blog previously posted notice of the proposal.

The agencies have issued a technical correction to the proposal, stating:

Due to a technical error, the second page of Model form H-4 of the Board’s proposal and Model form B-4 of the Commission’s proposal, as published, erroneously included a row entitled “Key factors that adversely affected your credit score.” As discussed in the preamble to the proposed rules, the notice provided in connection with the credit score disclosure exception for non-mortgage credit is not required to include the key factors that affected the credit score (73 FR 28983).  This document corrects this error by amending Model forms H-4 and B-4 to delete this row.

For a full copy of the Federal Register notice containing the correction, please click here.

Comments remain due August 18, 2008.

Tags: Consumer Protection, Consumer Reports/Credit Reports, FACT Act, FCRA, Federal Reserve, Federal Trade Commission, Mortgage Banking - General, Regulations, Risk-Based Pricing, Unfair or Deceptive Acts by the Editor
No Comments »

The Federal Trade Commission has issued final rules under the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003. 

The FTC had proposed rules on May 12, 2005, and requested public comments. 

The final rule includes a substantial preamble, in which the FTC addresses issues raised by various commenters on the initial proposal. 

The Table of Contents for the final rules is as follows:

PART 316--CAN-SPAM RULE

Sec.316.1 Scope.

316.2 Definitions.

316.3 Primary purpose.

316.4 Requirement to place warning labels on commercial

electronic mail that contains sexually oriented material.

316.5 Prohibition on charging a fee or imposing other

requirements on recipients who wish to opt out.

316.6 Severability.

The preamble gives significant insight to the agency’s analysis.  For a copy of the preamble and complete final rule, please click here.

For a somewhat older general summary from the FTC of requirements and penalties under the CANSPAM Act, please click here.

Tags: CANSPAM, Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, Mortgage Banking - General, Regulations, Unfair or Deceptive Acts by the Editor
No Comments »

The Federal Trade Commission and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve have proposed new risk-based pricing rules under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003.  

According to the agencies’ joint summary, the new rules:

generally require a creditor to provide a risk-based pricing notice to a consumer when the creditor uses a consumer report to grant or extend credit to the consumer on material terms that are materially less favorable than the most favorable terms available to a substantial proportion of consumers from or through that creditor. The proposed rules also provide for two alternative means by which creditors can determine when they are offering credit on material terms that are materially less favorable. The proposed rules also include certain exceptions to the general rule, including exceptions for creditors that provide a consumer with a disclosure of the consumer’s credit score in conjunction with additional information that provides context for the credit score disclosure.

Comments are due August 18, 2008.

For a copy of the Federal Register notice, please click here.

Tags: Consumer Protection, Consumer Reports/Credit Reports, Federal Reserve, Federal Trade Commission, Financial Literacy, Mortgage Banking - General, Regulations, Risk-Based Pricing, Unfair or Deceptive Acts by the Editor
No Comments »

The Federal Trade Commission yesterday issued a reminder that the numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry were made permanent as a result of the Do-Not-Call Improvement Act of 2007, which became effective in February 2008.

The FTC noted that more than 157 million phone numbers are on the National Do Not Call Registry.  The government imposes fees on use of numbers not on the list. 

Devastating levels of penalties can apply in the event of violations.

For a copy of the press release, click here.

Tags: Consumer Protection, Do Not Call/Fax or Email, Federal Trade Commission, Legislation, Regulations by the Editor
No Comments »

In two unrelated Federal Trade Commission cases, discount retailer TJX and data brokers Reed Elsevier and Seisint have agreed to settle charges that each engaged in practices that, taken together, failed to provide reasonable and appropriate security for sensitive consumer information.

In typical manner, the settlements require that the companies take comprehensive information security for 20 years.

Click here for the full press release and for copies of the Consent Orders.

Tags: Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, Mortgage Banking - General, Security Breach by the Editor
No Comments »

The Federal Trade Commission has issued an advisory opinion responding to questions posed by the U.S. Foreclosure Network. 

The questions generally inquire whether the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits a debt collector in the foreclosure context from discussing settlement options in the collector’s initial or subsequent communications with the borrower.

The first issues addressed are:

Does a debt collector violate the FDCPA when he, either in conjunction with the sending of a “validation notice” pursuant to Section 809(a) of the FDCPA or subsequent to such notice, notifies a consumer of settlement options that may be available to avoid foreclosure?

In its opinion, the FTC stated that “there is no per se violation of Section 809(a) of the FDCPA if a debt collector includes information in these communications.  However, the conclusion does not prevent a finding that the communications, on a case-by-case basis, violate the FDCPA if they overshadow or are inconsistent with the disclosures of the consumer’s right to dispute the debt.

The second issue addressed is:

Does a debt collector commit a false, misleading or deceptive act or practice in violation of Section 807 of the FDCPA when he presents a consumer with information about settlement options available to the consumer to avoid foreclosure?

The FTC opinion provides that there is no per se violation of Section 807 in presenting such information.  However, particular information could be found on a case-by-case review to violate the Act if it contained a false or misleading representation or omission of material fact.

The FTC’s press release can be found here.  A copy of the opinion can be found here.

Tags: Consumer Protection, Debt Collection, FDCPA, Federal Trade Commission, Foreclosure, Loan Modifications/Workouts, Mortgage Banking - General, Regulations, Unfair or Deceptive Acts by the Editor
No Comments »