[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 181 (Monday, September 20, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57252-57253]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-23487]


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BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION

[Docket No.: CFPB-HQ-2010-1]


Designated Transfer Date

AGENCY: Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 
(``CFP Act''),\1\ the Secretary of the Treasury designates July 21, 
2011, as the date for the transfer of functions to the Bureau of 
Consumer Financial Protection (``CFPB''). On this ``designated transfer 
date,'' certain authorities will transfer from other agencies to the 
CFPB, and the CFPB will be able to exercise certain additional, new 
authorities under the CFP Act and other laws. After consulting with the 
heads of the agencies whose functions will transfer to the CFPB, as 
well as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the 
Secretary finds that designating July 21, 2011, as the transfer date 
will advance the mission of the CFPB and promote an orderly and 
organized startup.
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    \1\ Tit. X, Public Law 111-203.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wally Adeyemo, Office of the Chief of 
Staff, Department of the Treasury, 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20220; telephone number: (202) 622-2000; e-mail address: 
_____________________________________-
[email protected].

DATES: The designated transfer date shall be July 21, 2011.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 21, 2010, the President signed into 
law the CFP Act, which is title X of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform 
and Consumer Protection Act. Section 1062 of the CFP Act, in relevant 
part, requires the Secretary to designate a single calendar date for 
the transfer of functions, under section 1061, to the CFPB.

Consultation With Transferor Agencies

    Section 1062(a)(1) requires the Secretary to consult with the heads 
of the seven ``transferor agencies'' \2\ and the Director of the Office 
of Management and Budget (``OMB'') and, in accordance with section 
1062(c)(1), select a date between 6 and 12 months after the date of 
enactment of the CFP Act as the designated transfer date. Following 
enactment of the Act, the Secretary conducted a meeting with the heads 
of the transferor agencies and the OMB Director. Treasury staff, 
working on

[[Page 57253]]

behalf of the Secretary and for the CFPB, also consulted with the 
transferor agencies and OMB to obtain additional input on issues 
relating to the transfer date.
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    \2\ Section 1061(a)(2) of the CFP Act defines the terms 
``transferor agency'' and ``transferor agencies'' to mean--``(A) the 
Board of Governors (and any Federal reserve bank, as the context 
requires), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal 
Trade Commission, the National Credit Union Administration, the 
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Office of Thrift 
Supervision, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, 
and the heads of those agencies; and (B) the agencies listed in 
subparagraph (A), collectively.''
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Functions of the CFPB

    On the designated transfer date, the ``consumer financial 
protection functions'' \3\ currently carried out by the Federal banking 
agencies, as well as certain authorities currently carried out by the 
Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Trade 
Commission, will be transferred to the CFPB. In particular, as of the 
designated transfer date, the CFPB will assume responsibility for 
consumer compliance supervision of very large depository institutions 
and their affiliates and promulgating regulations under various Federal 
consumer financial laws.\4\ The transfer of certain employees from six 
of those agencies to the CFPB must also occur within 90 days after the 
designated transfer date.\5\ New authorities of the CFPB under subtitle 
C of the Act, as well as other consumer protection provisions, will 
become effective on the designated transfer date as well.\6\
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    \3\ Section 1061(a)(1).
    \4\ See, e.g., Section 1025(b); subtitles C and H.
    \5\ Section 1064(b)(1).
    \6\ See, e.g., section 1037.
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    In the intervening period, the CFPB will lay the groundwork for an 
efficient transfer and prepare for consumer protection activities after 
July 21, 2011. For instance, prior to the designated transfer date, the 
CFPB will begin to conduct research relating to consumer financial 
products and services, develop its nationwide consumer complaint 
response center, plan and take steps to implement the risk-based 
supervision of nondepository covered persons, and prepare for the 
opening of outreach offices.
    Development of the supervision program for certain nondepository 
covered persons is particularly significant because no Federal agency 
previously has had the responsibility of supervising these entities, 
such as payday lenders, mortgage companies, debt collectors, and 
consumer reporting agencies.\7\ Prior to the designated transfer date, 
the CFPB will begin the significant task of building this supervision 
program, including hiring and training examination staff and making 
preparations necessary to begin a risk-based supervision program.
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    \7\ Section 1024(b) (requiring the CFPB to implement a risk-
based supervision program for covered persons described in section 
1024(a)(1)).
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    The CFPB will also work during the intervening period to prepare 
for the new authorities that will transfer or take effect as of the 
designated transfer date, for instance by planning the orderly 
integration of bank, thrift, and credit union examiners from five 
different Federal agencies and preparing for rulemakings required under 
the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. For 
example, the CFPB is holding a roundtable to begin gathering public 
input regarding the merger of overlapping mortgage forms required by 
the Truth in Lending Act and Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act.
    Congress contemplated that the lead time for the ``orderly 
implementation'' of the CFPB's functions could range between 6 to 18 
months after the date of enactment.\8\ To fulfill the statutory goal of 
an ``orderly and organized startup'' of the new agency,\9\ the CFPB 
should be provided a reasonable period of time to develop its 
operations and organization prior to the transfer of functions and 
employees from other agencies. A transfer date of July 21, 2011, 12 
months after the date of enactment, will provide the CFPB an 
appropriate period of time to hire and assign employees to support its 
new functions, as well as to plan and make important decisions 
necessary to build a strong foundation for the new agency.
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    \8\ Section 1062(c) (providing that the designated transfer date 
must be a date between 180 days and 12 months after the date of 
enactment of the CFP Act, subject to an extension of up to 18 months 
after the date of enactment).
    \9\ See section 1067(a)(1).
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Designation

    For all of the reasons set forth in this notice and in light of the 
comments provided by the transferor agencies and the Director of OMB, 
the designated transfer date under section 1062(a) of the CFP Act shall 
be July 21, 2011.

Timothy F. Geithner,
Secretary of the Treasury.
[FR Doc. 2010-23487 Filed 9-17-10; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4810-25-P