The CFPB has issued a request for information that seeks comment on its supervision program.  Comments on the RFI will be due no later than 90 days after it is published in the Federal Register, which the CFPB expects to occur on February 20.  (The CFPB’s three prior RFIs described below have 60-day comment periods.)

The new RFI represents the fourth in a series of RFIs announced by Mick Mulvaney, President Trump’s designee as Acting Director.  In the new RFI, the CFPB seeks comment on all aspects of its supervision program but lists the following 12 topics that represent “a preliminary attempt by the Bureau to identify elements of the Bureau processes related to its Supervision Program that may be deserving of more immediate focus.”

These topics are:

• Timing, frequency, and scope of supervisory process

• Timing, method or process used by the CFPB to collect information and documents from a supervised entity before it begins an examination

• Type and volume of information and documents requested in examination information requests

• Effectiveness and accessibility of the CFPB Supervision and Examination Manual

• Efficiency and effectiveness of onsite examination work

• Effectiveness of Supervision’s communications when potential violations are identified, including the usefulness and content of a potential action and request for response (PARR) letter

• Clarity, organization, and quality of communications that report the results of supervisory activities

• Clarity of matters requiring attention (MRA) and the reasonableness of timing requirements to satisfy MRAs

• Process for appealing supervisory findings

• Use of third parties by supervised entities to conduct assessments specified in MRAs or assess the sufficiency of completion of an MRA

• Usefulness of the CFPB’s Supervisory Highlights to share findings and promote transparency

• Manner and extent to which the CFPB can and should coordinate its supervisory activity with federal and state supervisory agencies

The CFPB’s first RFI, which has a March 27, 2018 comment deadline, seeks comment on the CFPB’s processes surrounding civil investigative demands and investigational hearings.  The second RFI, which has a comment deadline of April 6, 2018, seeks comment on how the CFPB can improve its administrative adjudication processes.  The third RFI, which has a comment deadline of April 13, 2018, seeks comment on how the CFPB can improve its enforcement processes.

In its press release announcing the fourth RFI, the CFPB stated that the next RFI in the series will be issued next week and will address the CFPB’s external engagement processes.  The press release also stated that the CFPB anticipates issuing RFIs on the following topics in the coming weeks:

• Complaint Reporting

• Rulemaking Processes

• Bureau Rules Not Under §1022(d) Assessment (§1022(d) requires the CFPB to conduct an assessment of  a significant rule no later than five years after the rule’s effective date.)

• Inherited Rules (Rules for which Dodd-Frank transferred authority from another federal agency to the CFPB)

• Guidance and Implementation Support

• Consumer Education

• Consumer Inquiries