Like most industries today, consumer finance service companies are heavily affected by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Troutman Pepper has developed a COVID-19 Resource Center to guide clients through this unprecedented global health challenge. We regularly update this site with COVID-19 news and developments, recommendations from leading healthcare organizations, and tools businesses can use for free.

Our banking and loan clients are also facing new challenges affecting their industry as a result of COVID-19, particularly the ever-changing rules and regulations regarding evictions and foreclosures. We are following these updates closely and have assembled an interactive tracking tool with state orders and guidance material regarding residential lockdowns and eviction moratoria. You can access this interactive tool at https://covid19.trutman.com/.

To help you stay on top of relevant activities, below is a breakdown of some of the biggest COVID-19 related events at the federal and state levels that have impacted the consumer finance services industry. last week :

Federal activities

State activities

Privacy and cybersecurity activities

Federal activities:

  • On July 15, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service announced that they had paid approximately $ 15 billion to families comprising nearly 60 million eligible children in the first monthly payment of the tax credit for Expanded and Newly Scalable Children of American Rescue. Plan that was adopted in March. Eligible families would receive a payment of up to $ 300 per month for each child under the age of six and up to $ 250 per month for each child between the ages of six and 17. For more information, click here.

  • On July 14, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced the joint release of an enhanced version of the award-winning financial education program, Money Smart for Older Adults, which includes new information regarding COVID. -19 scams. For more information, click here.

  • On July 14, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin, Jeff Merkley, Richard Blumenthal and Sheldon Whitehouse introduced legislation that would cap charges and interest on consumer loans at an APR of 36%. For more information, click here.

  • On July 13, the Federal Reserve System Board of Governors, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency asked the public for comment on proposed guidance designed to help banking organizations manage the risks associated with dealing with third parties, including relationships with fintech-focused entities. The proposed guidelines aim to help banking organizations identify and manage the risks associated with relationships with third parties and respond to comments from the sector requesting alignment between agencies on guidelines for managing risks with third parties. For more information, click here.

  • On July 13, US Senate Republicans on the Senate Banking Committee sent a letter to Rohit Chopra, President Joe Biden’s nominee for CFPB director. The letter calls for disqualification of Chopra after refusing to answer questions regarding his knowledge of allegations that Biden CFPB political leaders took potentially illegal steps to remove CFPB employees, such as offering incentives to separate employees. For more information, click here.

  • On July 13, the US Department of Health and Human Services released an interim final rule aimed at restricting surprise medical bills and health care provider balance billing. The opportunity to submit comments is open until September 7. For more information, click here.

State activities:

  • On July 7, the Virginia Supreme Court issued another order extending the declaration of judicial emergency. Circuit courts can now exercise their own discretion in determining how to safely operate their respective courts, including how to safely conduct jury trials, and can follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevent and the Virginia Department of Health. For more information, click here.

  • On July 16, the California Commissioner of the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation announced that license applications required under the Debt Collection Licensing Act will be online through the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System & Registry on September 1. start date January 1, 2022. For more information, click here.

  • On July 14, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the return of consumer filings for canceled events due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “The pandemic has caused a wave of disruption across New York State as we have seen weddings, religious ceremonies, professional conferences and many other large gatherings canceled or delayed,” Attorney General James said. “Since the onset of the pandemic, we have now returned nearly $ 800,000 to New Yorkers and will continue to fight for more, especially as the pandemic continues to wreak financial havoc on the residents of our state. »For more information, click on here.

  • On July 13, Washington, DC city council approved emergency debt collection legislation – emergency and temporary laws protecting consumers from unfair debt collection practices. Among other protections, this legislation (1) would require debt collectors to provide itemized statements and account numbers for debts owed, (2) limit the information that can be provided about employers or family members of a consumer, (3) would increase statutory damages to $ 4,000 per injured party, and (4) limit debt collectors to three appeals in a seven-day period. The legislation would expire 90 days after it was signed by Mayor Bowser. For more information, click here.

  • On July 12, the Massachusetts Banking Division (Division) issued guidelines allowing licensees and licensees to continue working remotely subject to compliance with the division’s terms and restrictions. The directives of the Division will remain permanent, unless otherwise modified or withdrawn. For more information, click here.

Privacy and cybersecurity activities:

  • On July 12, Interpol General Secretary Jürgen Stock called on law enforcement agencies around the world to form a global coalition with industry partners to prevent a “potential ransomware pandemic”. Over the past year, the frequency of ransomware attacks has increased dramatically. “[C]criminals made $ 350 million in 2020 from ransomware payments, which is a 311% increase in one year. During the same period, the average ransom payment increased 171%. This is, in large part, the result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and “[m]like the pandemic[,] Ransomware evolves in different variants, delivering high financial profits to criminals. To read Interpol’s four recommendations for creating a global leadership framework for taking action to disrupt and mitigate the impact of ransomware, click here.

For those interested in knowing how US states are responding to the growing threat of ransomware, check out Troutman Pepper’s recent blog post by clicking here.

  • On July 12, it was reported that President Biden’s recent summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin involved discussions focused on cybersecurity. “Biden and Putin have agreed that the United States and Russia will launch a series of expert consultations to move towards more tangible results related to cybersecurity. The report suggests that the expert consultations between the United States and Russia clearly outline the issues and topics addressed by taking a sectoral approach. “The coronavirus pandemic provides a recent example of a sectoral approach. The pandemic served as a focal point for sector standards to gain traction[,] in terms of strengthening both the centrality of information and communications technologies in general during the pandemic and the importance of protecting the healthcare and medical sector from malicious cyber activity. To read more, click here.