ARLINGTON, Va.—Ahead of a House Financial Services Committee hearing reviewing the CFPB, NAFCU offered its input on where it believes the structure and operations of the Bureau could be enhanced.
In a letter to the committee, NAFCU Vice President of Legislative Affairs Brad Thaler highlighted NAFCU’s position on the CFPB’s ongoing rulemaking to revise the definition of qualified mortgage (QM) in light of the scheduled expiration of the government sponsored enterprise (GSE) patch.
NAFCU noted it has previously met with representatives at the CFPB to discuss the GSE patch, and last month the trade association signed on to a joint trades letter calling for the continued use of a modified debt-to-income ratio in conjunction with certain compensating factors, which could be used in the underwriting process and supporting significant changes to Appendix Q.
“In NAFCU’s comments on the rulemaking, we emphasize that the GSE Patch has been a key factor in credit unions’ ability to lend to members of their communities, especially those of low- and moderate-income, to help them achieve homeownership,” Thaler noted. “We asked that the CFPB grant an extension of the GSE Patch until revisions to the QM definition are finalized to alleviate market disruptions.
The ‘Key Objective’
“Above all, we think maintaining access to affordable and sustainable mortgage credit should be a key objective of this rulemaking, and we ask the Committee to help enforce this message to the CFPB,” he added.
Additionally, Thaler expressed support for Bureau Director Kathy Kraninger’s efforts to provide financial institutions with regulatory certainty and targeted relief, while continuing the CFPB’s focused efforts on bad actors of the financial crisis.
“Credit unions have a long history of providing affordable and responsible financial services to their members and were not responsible for the predatory lending practices that led to the financial crisis,” Thaler concluded.