InfoBytes Blog
FHFA proposes rule for new GSE products
On October 19, the FHFA announced a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPR) that would require Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (GSEs) to provide advance notice to FHFA of new activities and obtain prior approval before launching new products. According to a factsheet released in conjunction with the proposed rule, the NPR would allow “FHFA to assess the impact, risks, and benefits of a new activity, and to determine whether the new activity is a new product that merits public notice and comment,” and would replace an interim final rule that has been in effect since 2009. Among other things, the NPR would (i) establish revised criteria for determining “what is a new activity and a new product, and the process for that activity’s review and approval” by FHFA; (ii) provide a “unified notice process,” which will require the GSEs “to make a single form of submission”; (iii) streamline and simplify the advance notification process; and (iv) outline FHFA’s process for reviewing notices of new activity and provide timelines for both the public notice and request for comment period as well as final approval. Comments on the NPR must be submitted within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register.