STATE GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Legislative Session Update
The Indiana General Assembly marked the third week of session this past Thursday. Lawmakers have until the end of April to enact legislation. Bills highlighted below have experienced notable legislative engagement to date.
House Bill 1005 – Housing. Establishes the residential housing infrastructure assistance program (program) and residential housing infrastructure assistance revolving fund.
Senate Bill 5 – Consumer data protection. Establishes new standards related to a consumer’s ability to control and manage their data held by businesses.
Senate Bill 476 – Transfer of replacement payment card information. Provides that after June 30, 2023, a payment card network may not provide to a vendor with whom the holder of a payment card (cardholder) has an automatic payment arrangement the new: (1) payment card number; (2) expiration date; or (3) card verification value code; for a replacement card that is issued to the cardholder after the cardholder's payment card has been lost, stolen or compromised, unless the payment card network obtains the cardholder's authorization to do so.
House Bill 1093 – Consumer information protection. Provides that certain consumers may submit proper identification to a credit reporting agency, request certain information and submit a dispute with the credit reporting agency.
Senate Bill 468 – Uniform Commercial Code amendments. Each year, the Uniform Law Commission, an organization made up of practicing lawyers, judges, lawmakers and legislative staff, submit recommendations to every state for laws they say will "bring clarity and stability to critical areas of state statutory law." SB 468 would incorporate into Indiana's Uniform Commercial Code every recommendation made by the ULC in 2022 to address emerging technologies.
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
FinCEN Issues Alert on Russian Activity in Commercial Real Estate
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network Wednesday issued an alert to financial institutions on potential attempts by Russian elites to evade sanctions through the U.S. commercial real estate sector. The alert lists potential red flags and typologies involving attempted sanctions evasion. It also reminds financial institutions of their Bank Secrecy Act reporting obligations and, for banks, their customer due diligence obligations.
According to the alert, potential sanctions-evasion methods include pooled investment vehicles such as offshore funds; shell companies and trusts; third parties who invest on behalf of sanctioned individuals; and investment in CRE projects that are unlikely to draw public attention but generate stable returns.
The alert noted that banks frequently work with market participants who seek financing for CRE projects, and that banks have CDD obligations to verify the beneficial owners of legal entity customers. “Banks therefore may be in a position to identify and report suspicious activities associated with sanctioned Russian elites and their proxies, including [politically exposed persons], among banks’ CRE-related customers,” according to the alert.
Chopra Questions Home Appraisal Regulation Regime
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra Tuesday questioned the appropriateness of having an independent nonprofit set home appraisal standards across the country, suggesting regulators may want to take a closer look at the arrangement in the future.
The Appraisal Foundation is a nongovernmental, professional body with a congressional mandate to set appraisal standards and minimum real estate appraiser qualifications, which are adopted by states. During a hearing on appraisal bias by the Appraisal Subcommittee, Chopra – a committee member – asked several pointed questions about the foundation and its funding structure, which comes from fees paid by member organizations and the sale of professional publications to appraisers. The CFPB director said he had heard from appraisers who believe the foundation’s fees were excessive. He also noted that the subcommittee, which is composed of federal regulators, had little say over the foundation or the appraisal standards it sets.
“I think not many people understand how this Byzantine system works,” Chopra said. “And I think it is something we really need to think about, whether it is appropriate for this type of fee structure and for there to be payments, including relating to governance. That raises a lot of questions for this subcommittee, for regulators, and I think for future hearings.”
Watch a recording of the subcommittee hearing
CFPB Seeks Public Input for Credit Card Industry Review
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking public feedback on how the consumer credit market is functioning as part of a biennial review of the industry, the agency announced Tuesday. The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act requires the CPFB to conduct a review every two years to determine whether regulatory adjustments are needed.
The CFPB said it is interested in hearing about people’s overall experiences with credit card products. The agency is seeking feedback on credit card agreement terms; disclosure of terms, fees and other expenses in card plans; adequacy of protections against unfair or deceptive acts; and costs and availability. Comments are due by April 24.
Democratic Members of House Financial Services Committee Named
Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., ranking member on the House Financial Services Committee, announced Wednesday the Democratic members of the committee for the 118th Congress.
The members are Reps. Nydia Velázquez, New York; Brad Sherman, California; Gregory Meeks, New York; David Scott, Georgia; Stephen Lynch, Massachusetts; Al Green, Texas; Emanuel Cleaver, Missouri; Jim Himes, Connecticut; Bill Foster, Illinois; Joyce Beatty, Ohio; Juan Vargas, California; Josh Gottheimer, New Jersey; Vicente Gonzalez, Texas; Sean Casten, Illinois; Ayanna Pressley, Massachusetts; Ritchie Torres, New York; Steven Horsford, Nevada; Rashida Tlaib, Michigan; Sylvia Garcia, Texas; Nikema Williams, Georgia; Wiley Nickel, North Carolina; and Brittany Pettersen, Colorado.