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UPDATE: The U.S. Justice Department is working to appeal the D.C. District Court's ruling and the judge has placed a temporary stay on her decision vacating the eviction moratorium order. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit have until May 12 to file their response to oppose the delay, after which the Justice Department will have four days to respond.

A U.S. district court judge Wednesday vacated the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Public Health Service Act order that halted residential evictions nationwide through June 30, determining that the agency overstepped its authority.

The CDC issued the order last year and has extended it several times to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Federal housing agencies have also extended their foreclosure and eviction moratoriums through June 30.

In the ruling, the D.C. District Court judge argued the CDC went "too far" in interpreting its authority to protect public health and the enumerated ways in which the secretary could achieve that purpose.

"[T]he Public Health Service Act authorizes the Department to combat the spread of disease through a range of measures, but these measures plainly do not encompass the nationwide eviction moratorium set forth in the CDC order," she wrote.

Relatedly, the CFPB this week released two reports related to mortgage issues amid the pandemic.

One of the new reports is a research brief on mortgage borrowers that found Black and Hispanic borrowers are disproportionately in forbearance or delinquent on their loans. It also revealed that loans in forbearance or delinquent are disproportionately likely to have high loan-to-value ratios and limited equity.

The other report looks at consumer complaints related to mortgage forbearance. The bureau highlighted two issues of note:

• servicer communications, with consumers complaining that servicers did not provide clear and accurate information about their options; and
• delays and denials of loan modifications.

Last month, the CFPB issued an interim final rule (IFR) that requires debt collectors to provide tenants with written notice of their rights under the now-vacated eviction moratorium issued by the CDC. The bureau has also proposed mortgage servicing changes under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), or Regulation X, as it seeks to protect borrowers impacted by the pandemic.

The bureau previously issued a compliance bulletin outlining six areas it will focus on as it monitors how servicers engage with borrowers, respond to borrower requests, and process applications for loss mitigation as forbearance relief provisions expire. The bureau and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also recently announced they are investigating potentially illegal eviction practices.

NAFCU has consistently flagged its concerns related to increased forbearance requests amid the coronavirus pandemic and how credit unions are working with members impacted by the crisis with regulators and lawmakers.