{"id":99215,"date":"2019-02-12T15:01:14","date_gmt":"2019-02-12T20:01:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=99215"},"modified":"2019-02-12T10:45:46","modified_gmt":"2019-02-12T15:45:46","slug":"james-leads-coalition-of-21-state-attorneys-general-to-urge-the-consumer-financial-protection-bureau-to-reject-anti-consumer-protection-policies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=99215","title":{"rendered":"James leads coalition of 21 state attorneys general to urge the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to reject anti-consumer protection policies"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Attorney General Letitia James<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

New York Attorney General Letitia James led a coalition of 21 State Attorneys General in urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau not to adopt recently-proposed policies that would erode critical consumer protections under the guise of fostering innovation in the consumer financial marketplace. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe CFPB was created to protect consumers and ensure the financial stability of this country,\u201d said\u00a0James. \u201cThese proposed rule changes would have the complete opposite effect \u2013 putting blind faith in the very industries and services they are supposed to regulate and correct. At a time when so many Americans are struggling to make ends meet, the CFPB should be\u00a0focused on protecting consumers, not advancing regulations that could hurt them.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposal announced in December 2018 would greatly expand\nthe CFPB\u2019s use of no-action letters, or informal guidance provided by a federal\nagency stating that it does not intend to bring an enforcement proceeding based\non facts described in an application. No-action letters are typically\nnon-binding and can be revoked at any time, but under the new CFPB proposal,\nno-action letters would no longer be non-binding staff guidance, would be of\nunlimited duration, and could only be revoked under limited circumstances. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposal would also create a regulatory \u201csandbox\u201d that\nwould allow financial services companies to test products without being subject\nto usual regulatory and licensing requirements. Under the Proposed Sandbox\nPolicy, approvals or exemptions granted by the CFPB would grant the recipient\nimmunity not only from a CFPB enforcement action, but also from enforcement\nactions by any Federal or State authorities, as well as from lawsuits brought\nby private parties. However, the CFPB has no authority to issue such sweeping\nimmunity absent formal rulemaking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposal is an unprecedented departure from the CFPB\u2019s\ncurrent, deliberately modest policy with respect to no-action letters, as well\nas the use of such letters by other federal agencies. The States objected to\nthe CFPB\u2019s proposed changes to its no-action letter policy for a number of\nreasons: <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n