Time Is Almost Up to Comment on Two Key Proposed Rules from Financial Regulators

As Bankers Online reports, there are two key deadlines for comment on proposed rules coming up. Financial institutions interested in sharing their two-cents with financial regulators have just a few more days to do so.

Proposed Rule Regarding Residential Real Estate Appraisals

On December 7, 2018, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding residential real estate appraisals in the Federal Register.

As written, the proposed rule “would increase the threshold level at or below which appraisals would not be required for residential real estate-related transactions from $250,000 to $400,000.”  Instead, such transactions would require an evaluation of real property “that is consistent with safe and sound banking practices.”

The proposed rule also proposes to conform the rural residential property appraisal exemption per the Economic Growth, Regulatory Reform, and Consumer Protection Act.

Comments are due by Tuesday, February 5, 2019.

Proposed Rules Regarding Regulation CC

On December 10, 2018, the Board and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding Regulation CC in the Federal Register. Regulation CC implements the Expedited Funds Availability Act (EFA Act).

The proposal contains two parts.

The first is a new rule, which proposes “a calculation methodology for implementing a statutory requirement to adjust the dollar amounts in the EFA Act every five years by the aggregate annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) rounded to the nearest multiple of $25.”

The second part of the notice reopens the comment period on the 2011 Funds Availability Proposal, which was originally published on March 3, 2011. It proposed “amendments to encourage banks to clear and return checks electronically, add provisions that govern electronic items cleared through the check-collection system, and shorten the ‘exception’ hold periods on deposited funds.”

The electronic funds environment has undergone tremendous change since 2011, which is why the agencies have reopened the comment period on this particular issue.

Comments are due by Friday, February 8, 2019.