CFPB Proposes Rule to Define "Larger Participants" in the Consumer Debt Collection And Consumer Reporting Markets

CFPB Dodd-Frank Nonbank Supervision

On February 16, the CFPB released a proposed rule to define “larger participants” in the markets for consumer debt collection and consumer reporting, thereby beginning the process by which the CFPB will determine which such entities are subject to its supervision. In short, the proposal uses annual receipts as the metric for determining larger participants. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, the CFPB has authority to supervise, regardless of size, nonbanks that provide to consumers (i) origination, brokerage, or servicing of residential mortgage loans secured by real estate, and related mortgage loan modification or foreclosure relief services; (ii) private education loans; and (iii) payday loans. The CFPB also has the power to supervise “larger participants” in any other market for consumer financial products or services, and the Act grants the CFPB authority to define “larger participants.” In this first effort to define larger participants in specific markets, the CFPB proposes to supervise debt collectors with more than $10 million in annual receipts from debt collection activities, which would cover approximately 175 debt collection firms that collectively account for 63 percent of annual receipts from the debt collection market. Consumer reporting agencies with more than $7 million in annual receipts from consumer reporting activities also would be covered, capturing approximately seven percent of consumer reporting agencies, or about 30 firms, which the CFPB estimates account for approximately 94 percent of the annual receipts from consumer reporting. Stakeholders and the public can submit comments on the proposal through April 17, 2012. The CFPB plans to issue larger participant proposed rules for other markets. Final rules for all markets must be published by July 21, 2012.