Newsroom

February 25, 2016

CFPB unveils 9 policy priorities at CAB meeting

CFPB laid out nine policy priorities it plans to tackle over the next two years, including rulemakings on overdraft and payday lending, and described its new "scale" for measuring a consumer's financial well-being during a Consumer Advisory Board meeting Thursday.

These nine initiatives, detailed by CFPB Director Richard Cordray, pertain to: mortgages, student loans, consumer reporting, small business lending, household balance sheets, demand-side consumer behavior, open-use credit market (including overdraft and payday lending), debt collection and arbitration.

Regarding overdraft, NAFCU has urged against any curtailment of credit programs through any CFPB rulemaking. Earlier this month, CFPB urged the nation's 25 largest retail banks to offer lower-risk deposit accounts to "help consumers avoid overdrafting." NAFCU has noted that credit unions already offer those types of accounts to their members.

NAFCU has also strongly urged that any future rulemaking on payday lending ensures credit unions are not forced to cease providing a viable alternative to predatory payday lenders.

During Thursday's meeting, the board also discussed consumers' financial well-being. In December, CFPB released a tool that educators and others working to build financial competence can use to measure the financial well-being of consumers. This new tool contains 10 questions that financial educators can use with their clients when measuring their financial security and overall financial well-being.