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July 9, 2014 – A memo released yesterday says CFPB, through its own policies and numerous financial services regulations, will consider a person to be legally married "nationwide" if the marriage is also seen as a legal one in the jurisdiction where it took place.

The memo, from CFPB Director Richard Cordray to the bureau's staff, was issued to address the impact of the Supreme Court's June 26, 2013, decision to strike down as unconstitutional section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act. This means same-sex couples who are married in jurisdictions recognizing their marriages as legal will be treated as such by CFPB.

"Accordingly, the Bureau will regard a person who is married under the laws of any jurisdiction to be married nationwide for purposes of the federal statutes and regulations under the Bureau's jurisdiction regardless of the person's place of residency," Cordray wrote.

Except where otherwise noted in the memo, he said, this policy will be applied under the following:

• Equal Credit Opportunity Act and Regulation B;
• Fair Debt Collection Practices Act;
• Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act and Regulation J;
• Truth in Lending Act and Regulation Z;
• Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and Regulation X;
• Bureau Ethics Regulations; and
• Procedures for Bureau Debt Collection.

The bureau published a blog post on the memo Tuesday.