[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 99 (Thursday, May 21, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 30890-30891]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-10966]


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BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION

12 CFR Part 1006

[Docket No. CFPB-2020-0010]
RIN 3170-AA41


Debt Collection Practices (Regulation F); Extension of Comment 
Period

AGENCY: Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

ACTION: Supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking; extension of 
comment period.

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SUMMARY: On March 3, 2020, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection 
(Bureau) published in the Federal Register a Supplemental Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking (SNPRM) requesting comment on the Bureau's proposal 
to amend Regulation F, which implements the Fair Debt Collection 
Practices Act (FDCPA), to require debt collectors to make certain 
disclosures when collecting time-barred debts. The SNPRM provided a 60-
day comment period that was set to close on May 4, 2020. In a document 
published in the Federal Register on March 27, 2020, the Bureau 
extended the comment period until June 5, 2020. To allow interested 
persons more time to consider and submit their comments, the Bureau has 
determined that a further extension of the comment period until August 
4, 2020, is appropriate.

DATES: The comment period for the debt collection SNPRM published March 
3, 2020, at 85 FR 12672, is extended. Responses to the SNPRM must now 
be received on or before August 4, 2020.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CFPB-2020-
0010 or RIN 3170-AA41, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Email: [email protected]. Include Docket 
No. CFPB-2020-0010 or RIN 3170-AA41 in the subject line of the email.
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Comment Intake, Bureau of 
Consumer Financial Protection, 1700 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20552. 
Please note that due to circumstances associated with the COVID-19 
pandemic, the Bureau discourages the submission of comments by mail, 
hand delivery, or courier.
    Instructions: The Bureau encourages the early submission of 
comments. All submissions should include the agency name and docket 
number or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) for this rulemaking. 
Because paper mail in the Washington, DC area and at the Bureau is 
subject to delay, and in light of difficulties associated with mail and 
hand deliveries during the COVID-19 pandemic, commenters are encouraged 
to submit comments electronically. In general, all comments received 
will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov. In 
addition, once the CFPB's headquarters reopens, 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. At that time, you can make an appointment 
to inspect the documents by telephoning 202-435-9169.
    All comments, including attachments and other supporting materials, 
will become part of the public record and subject to public disclosure. 
Proprietary or sensitive personal information, such as account numbers, 
Social Security numbers, or names of other individuals, should not be 
included. Comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or 
contact information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Seth Caffrey or Kristin McPartland, 
Senior Counsels, Office of Regulations, at 202-435-7700. If you require 
this document in an alternative electronic format, please contact 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On February 21, 2020, the Bureau issued an 
SNPRM proposing to amend Regulation F, 12 CFR part 1006, to prescribe 
Federal rules governing the activities of debt collectors, as that term 
is defined in the FDCPA. The SNPRM was published in the Federal 
Register on March 3, 2020.\1\ The SNPRM proposed to require debt 
collectors to make certain disclosures when collecting time-barred 
debts.
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    \1\ 85 FR 12672 (Mar. 3, 2020).
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    The SNPRM provided a 60-day public comment period that was set to 
close on May 4, 2020. In light of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 
pandemic, and in response to requests from stakeholders to give 
interested parties more time to conduct outreach to relevant 
constituencies and to properly address the many questions presented in 
the SNPRM, the Bureau extended the comment period until June 5, 
2020.\2\ Since extending the comment period, the Bureau has received 
requests from a consumer advocacy group, a debt collection trade 
association, and three State Attorneys General to extend the comment 
period for an additional 60-

[[Page 30891]]

day period. These stakeholders state that the COVID-19 pandemic 
continues to make it difficult to respond to the SNPRM thoroughly. The 
Bureau agrees that the pandemic makes it difficult to respond to the 
SNPRM thoroughly and to determine when stakeholders will be able to do 
so. To ensure that stakeholders have the time they need to provide such 
responses, the Bureau concludes that an extension of the SNPRM comment 
period to August 4, 2020, is appropriate. This extension should allow 
interested parties more time to prepare responses to the SNPRM without 
delaying the rulemaking on this topic. The SNPRM comment period will 
now close on August 4, 2020.
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    \2\ 85 FR 17299 (Mar. 27, 2020).
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Signing Authority

    The Director of the Bureau, having reviewed and approved this 
document, is delegating the authority to electronically sign this 
document to Laura Galban, a Bureau Federal Register Liaison, for 
purposes of publication in the Federal Register.

    Dated: May 15, 2020.
Laura Galban,
Federal Register Liaison, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.
[FR Doc. 2020-10966 Filed 5-20-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-AM-P