[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 38 (Monday, February 26, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8247-8249]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-03788]


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BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION

[Docket No. CFPB-2018-0005]


Request for Information Regarding Bureau External Engagements

AGENCY: Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

ACTION: Notice and request for information.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) seeks 
comments and information from interested parties to assist the Bureau 
in assessing its public and non-public external engagements, including 
but not limited to field hearings, town halls, roundtables, and 
meetings of the Advisory Board and Councils.

DATES: Comments must be received by May 29, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may submit responsive information and other comments, 
identified by Docket No. CFPB-2018-0005, by any of the following 
methods:
     Electronic: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments.
     Email: [email protected]. Include Docket 
No. CFPB-2018-0005 in the subject line of the message.
     Mail: Comment Intake, Consumer Financial Protection 
Bureau, 1700 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20552.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Comment Intake, Consumer Financial 
Protection Bureau, 1700 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20552.
    Instructions: The Bureau encourages the early submission of 
comments. All submissions must include the document title and docket 
number. Because paper mail in the Washington, DC area and at the Bureau 
is subject to delay, commenters are encouraged to submit comments 
electronically. In general, all comments received will be posted 
without change to http://www.regulations.gov. In addition, comments 
will be available for public inspection and copying at 1700 G Street 
NW, Washington, DC 20552, on official business days between the hours 
of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. eastern time. You can make an appointment to 
inspect the documents by telephoning 202-435-7275.
    All submissions in response to this request for information, 
including attachments and other supporting materials, will become part 
of the public record and subject to public disclosure. Sensitive 
personal information, such as account numbers or Social Security 
numbers, or names of other individuals, should not be included. 
Submissions will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact 
information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Zixta Martinez, Associate Director, 
External Affairs, at 202-435-9745. If you require this document in an 
alternative electronic format, please contact 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In addition to using notice and comment to 
seek feedback on regulations from external stakeholders, the Bureau of 
Consumer Financial Protection has historically conducted external 
engagements, such as field hearings, town halls, roundtables, non-
public meetings, and public meetings of the Bureau's Advisory Board and 
Councils, to discuss and receive feedback on its work.
    To assess its external engagements, the Bureau is, as described 
below,

[[Page 8248]]

issuing this request for information seeking public comment on how best 
to conduct future external engagements while continuing to achieve the 
Bureau's statutory objectives.

Overview of This Request for Information

    To ensure that the Bureau hears regularly from diverse external 
stakeholders, it conducts public and non-public meetings, including 
field hearings, town halls, roundtables, and meetings of its Advisory 
Board and Councils.
    The Bureau's field hearings are organized around a specific topic 
and take place in geographically diverse locations throughout the 
United States. Field hearings are announced on the Bureau's website, 
are open to the public, and are livestreamed on the Bureau's website. 
The hearings typically begin with introductory remarks by a Bureau 
staff member, state or local officials, the CFPB Director, followed by 
a panel discussion with industry representatives, nonprofit 
organizations, academics, or other subject matter experts. After the 
panel discussion, a CFPB staff member invites audience input about the 
specific topic and/or discussion. Participation is open to all field 
hearing attendees. Field hearings are available to view as archived 
videos on the Bureau's website at https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/events/archive-past-events/.
    Town halls may be open to the public or invitation-only and are 
sometimes co-hosted by another organization. They are historically 
organized around a specific topic or financial education. Town halls 
typically include remarks by the CFPB Director or a CFPB staff person, 
followed by an audience comment period. Sometimes town halls will 
include a small discussion panel made up of the CFPB Director or CFPB 
staff and an external stakeholder, such as an industry representative 
or a member of a nonprofit organization. To date, the Bureau has held 
33 field hearings and 15 town halls in over 40 cities.
    Roundtables are invitation-only events with the CFPB Director or 
CFPB staff to discuss particular issues. Roundtables have historically 
included industry representatives, nonprofit organizations, academics, 
or other interested parties.
    The Bureau has organized four formal advisory groups (Advisory 
Board and Councils):
     The Consumer Advisory Board (CAB);
     The Community Bank Advisory Council (CBAC);
     The Credit Union Advisory Council (CUAC); and
     The Academic Research Council (ARC).
    The CAB is required by section 1014(a) of the Dodd-Frank Wall 
Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act). The purpose 
of the CAB is ``to advise and consult with the Bureau in the exercise 
of its functions under the Federal consumer financial laws, and to 
provide information on emerging practices in the consumer financial 
products or services industry, including regional trends, concerns, and 
other relevant information.'' 12 U.S.C. 5494(a). The CAB is a source of 
market intelligence and expertise for the agency; the CAB also advises 
and consults with Bureau staff about various aspects of the Bureau's 
work. The Bureau has established three other advisory groups. The CBAC 
advises the Bureau about the effects of regulating consumer financial 
products or services from the unique perspectives of community banks, 
and the CUAC does the same from the unique perspectives of credit 
unions. The ARC advises the Bureau about research methodologies, data 
collection, and analytic strategies and provides feedback about 
research and strategic planning.
    Since their establishment in 2012, the Bureau's advisory groups 
have convened in-person and via conference call to fulfill their 
designated purpose. In addition to service on the full advisory group, 
members also typically serve on a subcommittee that is focused on 
particular issues. Advisory group meetings can take place during one 
day or a series of days, depending on the meeting objectives. The 
meeting structure typically includes remarks by the CFPB Director and 
discussions among members and Bureau subject matter experts. At 
meetings of the CAB, there are also presentations from CAB members 
about consumer finance trends and themes. In addition, when advisory 
group meetings are held outside of Washington, DC, they have 
historically included a segment where members of the public may provide 
comment on issues that they care about. Advisory group meetings are 
announced to the public via the Federal Register and the Bureau's 
website. They are also livestreamed, and a summary of the meeting is 
published. Each advisory group produces an annual report to the 
Director about its activities for the fiscal year. To date, the Bureau 
has conducted 47 public meetings of its advisory groups.
    The Bureau aims to conduct engagements in locations throughout the 
United States in order to engage with the public and inform its work. 
The Bureau expects that entities that have engaged with the Bureau are 
likely to have useful information and perspectives about Bureau 
engagements. The Bureau is especially interested in better 
understanding how it may improve or revise its engagements to better 
achieve the Bureau's statutory objectives.

Areas of Interest

    The following list of areas of interest represents a preliminary 
attempt by the Bureau to identify elements of Bureau processes related 
to external engagements on which it should focus. This non-exhaustive 
list is meant to assist in the formulation of comments and is not 
intended to restrict the issues that may be addressed. In addressing 
these areas, the Bureau requests that commenters identify with 
specificity the Bureau practices at issue, providing examples where 
appropriate.
    The Bureau is seeking feedback on all aspects of conducting future 
external engagements, including the following areas of interest:
    1. Strategies for seeking public and private feedback from diverse 
external stakeholders on the Bureau's work;
    2. Structures for convening diverse external stakeholders and the 
public to discuss Bureau work in ways that maximize public 
participation and constructive input, including but not limited to 
structures utilized by the Bureau to date, such as field hearings, town 
halls, roundtables, and meetings of the advisory groups;
    3. Processes for transparency in determining topics, locations, 
timing, frequency, participants, and other important elements of both 
public and private events;
    4. Vehicles for soliciting public and private perspectives from 
outside of Washington, DC on the Bureau's work;
    5. Strategies for promoting transparency of external engagements, 
including Advisory Board and Council meetings, while protecting 
confidential business information and encouraging frank dialogue;
    6. Strategies and channels for distributing information about 
external engagements to maximize awareness and participation; and
    7. Other approaches, methods, or practices not currently utilized 
by the Bureau that would elicit constructive input on the Bureau's 
work.

    Authority: 12 U.S.C. 5511(c).


[[Page 8249]]


    Dated: February 15, 2018.
Mick Mulvaney,
Acting Director, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.
[FR Doc. 2018-03788 Filed 2-23-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4810-AM-P