How ACA is working with the BCFP to craft balanced rules for the accounts receivable management industry.
10/23/2018 9:00
By Leah Dempsey
I was racking my brain for a clever Halloween reference to coincide with my October article about what to expect over the next few months for the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection’s Fair Debt Collection Practices Act rulemaking. As a lawyer not often mistaken for a comedian, for the most part I failed. But, so as not to leave you pun-less, I think we can consider one spooky question as this article dissects the road ahead: “Will the BCFP rule turn out to be a trick or a treat?”
ACA International has been working very hard to ensure the latter by providing industry feedback to the BCFP as it crafts the proposed FDCPA rule. In May, we delivered a wish list to the bureau with overarching requests the BCFP should consider:
- Defining the date of default.
- Defining a dispute and developing a formal dispute process.
- Standardization of information that is transferred between first and third parties.
- A clear and concise model validation notice.
- Clear guidance on the use of modern methods to communicate with consumers.
- When considering rules, the bureau must avoid a “one-size-fits-all approach.”
As part of the new leadership’s efforts to engage in more outreach with stakeholders, ACA recently participated in roundtables with senior BCFP staff, including those overseeing the rulemaking, in addition to a multitude of other meetings where we provided industry views and answered questions.
ACA also responded to an extensive BCFP request for information process this past summer, filing a dozen comment letters that included hundreds of pages of feedback from the accounts receivable management industry about changes the bureau should make going forward.
One of ACA’s comment letters focused specifically on rulemaking. We outlined details showing how ACA member companies support fair, objective and well-supported rulemaking focused on clarifying legal obligations for debt collectors and solving problems for consumers and regulated entities.
Our comments further noted that ACA’s members face a barrage of legal obligations imposed by an array of federal and state authorities, and welcome sensible regulation to resolve conflicting and ambiguous requirements that currently foster costly—and often frivolous— litigation.
The BCFP’s latest rulemaking agenda indicated that the proposed rule could be released for comment in March 2019, and our understanding is that the bureau is still aiming to stay close to that timeframe.
With that in mind, we are using the time until then to continue to make our case to the bureau that rules should be tailored to address confusing or conflicting aspects of the FDCPA, but should not cause any unnecessary regulatory burdens.
ACA Member Feedback is Needed
While we can’t be sure what the bureau’s rule will include until it is proposed, we know that we will need to have a robust, timely and succinct response. More likely than not, there will probably be parts of it that ACA members find beneficial and others that lead to concerns.
Once the rule is proposed, the public will likely have somewhere between 60 and 120 days to file comments in response. It will be pertinent that during this timeframe we outline what is helpful in the rule, what does not work, and any provisions that threaten the industry with overly burdensome costs or compliance requirements.
It will also be important to gain the support of members of Congress and other regulators who understand the critical services provided by the accounts receivable management industry. Critics will certainly weigh in during this time as well, and we’ll need to highlight the valuable role ACA members play in their communities and local economies.
As ACA charges ahead in preparation for a new BCFP rule next spring, don’t let the unknown haunt you; we will be prepared to advocate for the accounts receivable management industry whether we’re facing a trick, a treat or some combination of the two.
Leah Dempsey is ACA International’s vice president and senior counsel of federal advocacy. Read her complete article in the October issue of Collector magazine.
Related Content from ACA International:
BCFP Regulatory Agenda: Debt Collection Rule Remains on Deck for March 2019
Subscriptions to the Collector magazine digital edition and email notifications for each new issue are available for ACA International members by logging in to ACA International’s website here. Members and nonmembers can also purchase a print subscription. Nonmembers can create a guest profile on ACA’s website to subscribe to available publications.