[author: Barbara S. Mishkin]

Sixteen industry trade groups, including the American Bankers Association, the American Financial Services Association and the Mortgage Bankers Association, have written to Director Cordray urging the CFPB to convene a Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) panel on the proposed ability-to-repay/qualified mortgage rule. As we reported, on May 31, the CFPB reopened the comment period on the proposed rule issued by the Fed.

The trade groups’ letter acknowledges that the CFPB was not legally required to conduct a SBREFA review since the rulemaking was transferred to the CFPB after the Fed had issued the proposal. However, in the letter, the trade groups assert that given the potentially significant impact of the rule on the housing market and the extra rulemaking time resulting from the reopening of the comment period, a SBREFA panel should be convened as a matter of regulatory best practice to consider how the rule will impact small businesses.