April 2016 

 

Fair Lending Report of 

the Consumer Financial 

Protection Bureau 
1 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Message from 

Richard Cordray 

Director of the CFPB 

When Congress established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the goal was to shine a 

light on unfair and discriminatory practices in the financial system. The legislation specifically 

tasked the Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity with this critical obligation, but our 

commitment to finding and eliminating these practices extends throughout the Bureau. Indeed, 

ensuring fair and nondiscriminatory access to credit goes to the core of the Bureau’s mission: 

protecting consumers and promoting openness in America’s financial markets. 

The past year has been especially productive for the Office of Fair Lending. In the mortgage 

market, they teamed up with the Department of Justice to resolve the largest redlining case in 

history against Hudson City Savings Bank (since acquired by M&T Bank), which will pay nearly 

$33 million in direct loan subsidies, funding for community programs and outreach, and a civil 

penalty. In that case, which arose out of a fair lending supervisory review at Hudson City, the 

Bureau found that Hudson City provided unequal access to credit by structuring its business to 

avoid and thus discourage access to mortgages for residents in majority-Black-and-Hispanic 

neighborhoods1

 in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. The Office of Fair 

 

1 “Majority-Black-and-Hispanic neighborhoods” or “majority-Black-and-Hispanic communities” means census tracts 

in which more than 50 percent of the residents are identified in the 2010 U.S. Census as either “Black or African 

American” or “Hispanic or Latino.”
2 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Lending also resolved a significant discrimination case involving Provident Funding Associates 

based on our finding that over 14,000 African-American and Hispanic borrowers paid more in 

mortgage brokers’ fees than did similarly-situated non-Hispanic White borrowers. The Office 

also helped revise the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act’s Regulation C such that mortgage lenders 

will begin collecting a more comprehensive set of mortgage loan data starting in 2018, which 

will allow regulators, lenders, researchers, and the public to better pinpoint and address 

potential discrimination in the mortgage market, among other important goals. 

The Office of Fair Lending also has continued to examine and investigate indirect auto lenders 

for compliance with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. Last year brought two noteworthy 

results, with prominent consent orders issued for American Honda Finance Corporation and 

Fifth Third Bank. In both matters, the Bureau alleged that the lender’s policy of discretionary 

dealer markup resulted in minority borrowers paying more for loans without regard to their 

creditworthiness. The lenders agreed to reduce substantially the amount of discretion they 

permit dealers to mark up such loans and to pay a combined total of $42 million in restitution to 

harmed consumers. Our supervisory and enforcement work remains ongoing, as shown by our 

recent similar action against Toyota Motor Credit, and I urge indirect auto lenders to carefully 

consider the terms of these orders as they evaluate compliance in their own lending programs. 

One tangible outcome of the Office of Fair Lending’s dedication is the money they help return to 

harmed consumers. When an enforcement action is resolved, typically much more work must be 

done before consumers see the benefits. Last year, the Office worked with Synchrony Bank 

(formerly GE Capital Retail Bank) to complete payments of over $200 million to consumers who 

were excluded from debt relief offers because of their national origin. They also worked with 

PNC Bank (successor to National City Bank) to complete payments of over $35 million to tens of 

thousands of African-American and Hispanic borrowers who were charged higher prices on 

their mortgage loans. Finally, they worked with Ally Financial Inc. and Ally Bank to complete 

payments of over $80 million to over 300,000 borrowers who experienced discrimination in the 

pricing of Ally’s auto loans. In addition to money returned to consumers through public 

enforcement actions, we achieve additional redress for consumers through the supervisory 

process. These results demonstrate the Office of Fair Lending’s commitment to bettering the 

lives of consumers by ensuring fair, nondiscriminatory access to credit. 

The list of fair lending successes is even longer, as this report attests. We share our work in 

many ways, including guidance through Supervisory Highlights, industry and consumer 

outreach, and productive discussions with policymakers, including members of Congress. We 
3 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

welcome such dialogue because an integral part of the Bureau’s commitment to diversity and 

inclusion is engaging many different voices in a broad discussion of these critical issues. The 

pursuit of civil rights has always required perseverance, and I am proud of the work my Fair 

Lending colleagues do to move forward in this important area. 

We are proud of the Bureau’s work in 2015 and the successes of our Fair Lending team. And we 

are thankful for the continued interest that so many people have in our fair lending work. 

Sincerely, 

Richard Cordray 
4 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Message from 

Patrice Alexander 

Ficklin 

Director, Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity 

This past year, 2015, has been one of tremendous growth and accomplishment for the CFPB’s 

Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity. From enforcement and supervision to outreach 

and rulemaking, our office is dedicated to using the tools Congress provided to achieve our 

mission: fair, equitable, and nondiscriminatory credit for consumers.2 After the whirlwind of 

getting on our feet and “standing up” the Bureau, we have continued to solidify our presence in 

now-familiar markets and explored new and emerging issues in other markets. This is an 

exciting new phase in the Bureau’s tenure that promises to make lasting improvements in the 

lives of America’s consumers. 

As part of the Office of Fair Lending’s statutory responsibility for oversight and enforcement of 

the Equal Credit Opportunity Act3 (ECOA) and the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act4 (HMDA), we 

carefully prioritize among market areas to best utilize our resources. The mortgage and auto 

 

2 Dodd-Frank Act, § 1013(c)(2)(A), Pub. L. No. 111-203, 124 Stat. 1376 (2010) (codified at 12 U.S.C. § 5493(c)(2)(A)). 

3 15 U.S.C. § 1691 et seq.

4 12 U.S.C. § 2801 et seq.
5 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

markets represent two of the most significant consumer experiences with credit and weigh 

heavily in our prioritization process. Homes and cars are typically two of the largest and most 

important purchases for consumers, and the Bureau is committed to ensuring these transactions 

are fair and equitable for all consumers. Our efforts in 2015 have required approximately $108 

million in restitution to consumers harmed by discrimination and additional monetary 

payments, including loan subsidies, increased consumer financial education, and civil money 

penalties. Our efforts have also resulted in heightened industry awareness and increased 

consumer financial education. This year, all four of our public enforcement actions related to 

these two markets, resulting in monetary remediation for harmed consumers and forwardlooking mechanisms to prevent future discrimination. Mortgage and auto featured prominently 

in our non-public supervisory work as well. Moreover, in January 2016, as a result of a 

settlement with Ally Financial Inc. and Ally Bank, the DOJ and the Bureau, a settlement 

administrator mailed $80 million plus accrued interest in checks to consumers harmed by 

discriminatory auto loan pricing policies. 

While our settlement administration and mortgage and auto work continue to be priorities for 

our office, we have made significant strides in expanding our efforts to help consumers in other 

priority markets. These priority markets include the credit card market, where we continue to 

engage in both supervisory and enforcement work related to fair lending risks in that market. 

Notably, we also added small business lending to our priorities to address fair lending risks in 

that market. Small businesses are a backbone of our nation’s economy and access to credit is 

critical to their operation and growth. Unlike large businesses, many small businesses are sole 

proprietorships where the owner’s personal credit—and potentially that of family and friends—

may be on the line.5 With so much at stake, and in light of the heightened fair lending risk 

acknowledged by the enactment of Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act, we will continue to focus 

on small business lending in our Fair Lending work going forward. In addition, the Bureau’s 

 

5 See Office of Advocacy, Small Business Administration, Frequently Asked Questions (March 2014), available at 

https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/FAQ_March_2014_0.pdf (according to the Small Business 

Administration (SBA), approximately 72.1% of all businesses are sole proprietorships). 
6 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

rulemaking required by the Dodd-Frank Act’s small business data collection provision6 is now in 

the pre-rule stage.7 We look forward to developing additional subject-matter expertise in this 

market as we engage in dialogue with stakeholders, including industry, consumer advocates, 

and other market experts, conduct further examinations, and gather additional data and 

information in connection with the rulemaking. 

The Bureau also published its final rule implementing Dodd-Frank’s amendments to HMDA’s 

Regulation C. HMDA data are integral to the everyday work of our office and others within the 

Bureau. One of HMDA’s primary purposes is identifying potential discrimination, and many 

other stakeholders will benefit from improved data, including other agencies, the public, 

consumer groups, researchers, and industry itself. The final rule reflects our practical experience 

working with the data, as well as hundreds of comments from industry, consumer advocates, 

civil rights groups, and other stakeholders. These changes will undoubtedly enhance our work as 

we are able to analyze and act on this more robust information. 

The Dodd-Frank Act mandated the creation of the CFPB’s Office of Fair Lending and Equal 

Opportunity and charged it with ensuring fair, equitable, and nondiscriminatory access to credit 

to consumers; coordinating our fair lending efforts with Federal and State agencies and 

regulators; working with private industry, fair lending, civil rights, consumer and community 

advocates to promote fair lending compliance and education; and annually reporting to 

Congress on our efforts. 

I am proud to say that the Office continues to fulfill our Dodd-Frank mandate and looks forward 

to continuing to work together with all stakeholders in protecting America’s consumers. To that 

end, I am excited to share our progress with this, our fourth, Fair Lending Report.8

 

6 Dodd-Frank Act § 1071(a) (codified at 15 U.S.C. § 1691c-2(a)). 

7 80 Fed. Reg. 78,055, 78,058 (Dec. 15, 2015). 

8 See Dodd-Frank Act § 1013(c)(2)(D) (codified at 12 U.S.C. § 5493(c)(2)(D)). 
7 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Sincerely, 

Patrice Alexander Ficklin 
8 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Table of contents 

Message from Richard Cordray ................................................................................. 1

Message from Patrice Alexander Ficklin ................................................................... 4

Table of contents ......................................................................................................... 8

Executive summary ................................................................................................... 10

1. Fair Lending prioritization ................................................................................. 15

1.1 Risk-based prioritization: A data-driven approach to prioritizing areas 

of potential fair lending harm to consumers ..........................................15

2. Fair Lending supervision ................................................................................... 20

2.1 Fair Lending supervisory observations .................................................. 21

2.2 Potential Action and Request for Response for Fair Lending (PARR-FL) 

letters ...................................................................................................... 28

2.3 ECOA baseline modules update ............................................................. 29

3. Fair Lending enforcement .................................................................................. 31

3.1 Fair Lending public enforcement actions ............................................... 31

3.2 Implementing public consent orders ..................................................... 38

3.3 Equal Credit Opportunity Act referrals to the Department of Justice .. 42

3.4 Pending fair lending investigations ........................................................ 42
9 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

4. Rulemaking and related guidance ..................................................................... 44

4.1 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (Regulation C) ..................................... 44

4.2 Small business data collection ................................................................ 50

4.3 Amicus Program ..................................................................................... 50

5. Research ............................................................................................................. 53

5.1 Proxy methodology ................................................................................. 53

5.2 Methodologies that can be used to understand underwriting 

disparities .............................................................................................. 55

6. Interagency coordination ................................................................................... 57

6.1 Interagency coordination and engagement ............................................ 57

6.2 CFPB-HUD Memorandum of Understanding........................................ 58

7. Outreach: Promoting fair lending compliance and education ........................ 60

7.1 Section 8 HCV Homeownership Compliance Bulletin ........................... 61

7.2 HMDA Rule and RFI .............................................................................. 62

7.3 Blog posts ................................................................................................ 62

7.4 Fair Lending Webinar ............................................................................. 64

7.5 Supervisory Highlights ........................................................................... 64

8. Interagency reporting ......................................................................................... 65

8.1 Equal Credit Opportunity Act enforcement ........................................... 65

8.2 Referrals to the Department of Justice .................................................. 68

8.3 Reporting on the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act ................................. 69

9. Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 70

Appendix A: ............................................................................................................... 71

Defined terms ................................................................................................... 71
10 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Executive summary 

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank or Dodd-Frank 

Act)9 established the Bureau as the Nation’s first federal agency with a mission focused solely on 

consumer financial protection and making consumer financial markets work for all Americans. 

Dodd-Frank established the Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity within the CFPB, and 

charged it with “providing oversight and enforcement of Federal laws intended to ensure the 

fair, equitable, and nondiscriminatory access to credit for both individuals and communities.”10 

The Bureau and the Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity (the Office of Fair Lending) 

have taken important strides over the last year in our efforts to protect consumers from credit 

discrimination and broaden access to credit, as we identify new and emerging fair lending risks 

and monitor institutions for compliance. In 2015, our fair lending supervisory and public 

enforcement actions directed institutions to provide approximately $108 million in remediation 

and other monetary payments.11

 Supervision and enforcement priorities and activity. The Bureau’s risk-based 

prioritization process allows the Office of Fair Lending to focus our supervisory and 

 

9 Pub. L. No. 111-203, 124 Stat. 1376 (2010). 

10 Dodd-Frank Act § 1013(c)(2)(A) (codified at 12 U.S.C. § 5493(c)(2)(A)). 

11 Figures represent estimates of monetary relief for consumers ordered by the Bureau as a result of supervisory or 

enforcement actions on solely fair lending matters in 2015, as well as other monetary payments such as loan 

subsidies, increased consumer financial education, and civil money penalties. The Bureau also ordered institutions 

to provide non-monetary relief to consumers. 
11 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

enforcement efforts on markets or products that represent the greatest risk for 

consumers. 

 Mortgage lending. Mortgage lending continues to be a key priority for the Office of 

Fair Lending for both supervision and enforcement, with a focus on HMDA data 

integrity and potential fair lending risks in the areas of redlining, underwriting, and 

pricing. In 2015, the Bureau resolved two public enforcement actions involving 

mortgage lending. Through 2015, our mortgage origination work has covered 

institutions responsible for close to half of the transactions reported pursuant to 

HMDA (and more than 60% of the transactions reported by institutions subject to 

the CFPB’s supervision and enforcement authority).12 Moreover, our supervisory 

work on mortgage servicing has included use of the ECOA Baseline Review Modules, 

which help us to identify potential fair lending risk in mortgage servicing and inform 

our prioritization of mortgage servicers. 

 Indirect auto lending. In 2015, the Bureau continued its work in overseeing and 

enforcing compliance with ECOA in indirect auto lending through both supervisory 

and enforcement activity, including monitoring compliance with our previous 

supervisory and enforcement actions. Our auto finance targeted ECOA reviews13

generally have included an examination of three areas: credit approvals and denials, 

interest rates quoted by the lender to the dealer (the “buy rates”), and any 

discretionary markup or adjustments to the buy rate. In 2015, the Bureau resolved 

two public enforcement actions involving discriminatory pricing and compensation 

structures in indirect auto lending. Our indirect auto work has covered more than 

60% of the auto loan market share by volume.14

 

12 CFPB analysis of HMDA data for 2015. 

13 ECOA targeted reviews focus on a specific line of business, such as mortgages, credit cards, or auto finance and 

typically include statistical analysis and, in some cases, loan file reviews in order to evaluate an institution’s 

compliance with ECOA and Regulation B within the specific business line selected. 

14 CFPB analysis of 2015 AutoCount data from Experian Automotive. 
12 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

 Credit cards. The Bureau also continued fair lending supervisory and enforcement 

work in the credit card market. We have focused in particular on the quality of fair 

lending compliance management systems and on fair lending risks in underwriting, 

line assignment, and servicing, including the treatment of consumers residing in 

Puerto Rico or who indicate that they prefer to speak in Spanish. Our work in this 

highly-concentrated market has covered institutions responsible for more than 75% 

of outstanding credit card balances in the United States.15

 Other product areas. The Bureau has focused supervision and enforcement work 

in other markets as well. For example, this year we began targeted ECOA reviews of 

small-business lending, focusing in particular on the quality of fair lending 

compliance management systems and on fair lending risks in underwriting, pricing, 

and redlining. We remain committed to assessing and evaluating fair lending risk in 

all credit markets under the Bureau’s jurisdiction. 

 Rulemaking. In October 2015, the Bureau published a final rule to amend Regulation 

C, the regulation that implements HMDA, to require covered lenders to report additional 

data elements, among other changes.16 In January 2016, in response to ongoing 

conversations with industry about compliance with Regulation C, the Bureau published a 

Request for Information (RFI) on the Bureau’s HMDA data resubmission guidelines.17 

 Guidance. In May 2015, the Bureau issued a compliance bulletin on the Section 8 

 

15 CFPB analysis of 3Q 2015 call reports. 

16 See Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (Regulation C), 80 Fed. Reg. 66,128 (Oct. 28, 2015) (codified at 12 U.S.C. § 

1003 et. seq.), available at https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-10-28/pdf/2015-26607.pdf. 

17 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Request for Information Regarding Home Mortgage Disclosure Act 

Resubmission Guidelines 2015-0058 (Jan. 12, 2016), available at 

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201601_cfpb_request-for-information-regarding-home-mortgage-disclosureact-resubmission.pdf. 
13 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Homeownership Program.18 The Bulletin reminds 

creditors of their obligations under ECOA19 and its implementing regulation, Regulation 

B,20 to provide non-discriminatory access to credit for mortgage applicants by 

considering income from the Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program. In addition, 

throughout the year, the Office of Fair Lending provided guidance and information on 

market trends through Supervisory Highlights. 

 Outreach to industry, advocates, consumers, and other stakeholders. The 

Bureau continues to initiate and encourage industry and consumer engagement 

opportunities to discuss fair lending compliance and access to credit issues, including 

through speeches, presentations, blog posts, webinars, rulemaking, public comments, 

and communication with Members of Congress. 

 Interagency coordination and collaboration. The Bureau continues to coordinate 

with the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) agencies,21 as well 

as the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the 

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), as we each play a role in 

enforcing our nation’s fair lending laws and regulations. In 2015, the Office of Fair 

Lending entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with HUD to formalize 

information-sharing between our agencies and maximize opportunities for joint 

investigations, when possible. 

 

18 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Program Bulletin 

2015-02 (May 11, 2015), available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201505_cfpb_bulletin-section-8-housingchoice-voucher-homeownership-program.pdf. 

19 15 U.S.C. § 1691 et seq.

20 12 C.F.R. pt. 1002 et seq.

21 The FFIEC member agencies are the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB), the Federal Deposit 

Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), the Office of the Comptroller of 

the Currency (OCC), and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The State Liaison Committee was 

added to FFIEC in 2006 as a voting member. 
14 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

This report generally covers the Bureau’s fair lending work during calendar year 2015. 
15 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

1. Fair Lending prioritization 

1.1 Risk-based prioritization: A data-driven 

approach to prioritizing areas of 

potential fair lending harm to consumers 

To use the CFPB’s fair lending research, supervision, and enforcement resources most efficiently 

and effectively, the Office of Fair Lending, working with other offices in the Bureau, developed a 

fair lending risk-based prioritization approach that assesses and determines how best to address 

areas of potential fair lending harm to consumers in the entities, products, and markets under 

our jurisdiction. 

The Bureau considers both qualitative and quantitative information at the institution, product, 

and market levels to determine where potential fair lending harm to consumers may be 

occurring. This information includes: consumer complaints; tips from advocacy groups, 

whistleblowers, and government agencies; supervisory and enforcement history; quality of 

lenders’ compliance management systems; results from data analysis; and market insights. The 

Office of Fair Lending integrates all of this information into the fair lending risk-based 

prioritization process, which is incorporated into the Bureau’s larger risk-based prioritization 

process, allowing the Bureau to efficiently allocate its fair lending resources to areas of greatest 

risk to consumers. We then coordinate with other regulators so that our focus and efforts may 

inform their work and vice versa. 

1.1.1 Complaints and tips 

The CFPB uses input from a variety of external and internal stakeholders to inform its fair 

lending prioritization process. We consider fair lending complaints handled by the Bureau’s 
16 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Office of Consumer Response and tips brought to the Office of Fair Lending’s attention by 

advocacy groups, whistleblowers, and other government agencies (at the local, state, and federal 

levels). As part of the prioritization process the Office of Fair Lending also considers public and 

private fair lending litigation. 

1.1.2 Supervisory and enforcement history 

The Bureau considers information gathered from prior fair lending work of the Bureau and 

other regulators, including any supervisory or enforcement actions. At the institution level, the 

Bureau considers results from past reviews, including information the Bureau has gathered 

about the fair lending risk(s) presented by a lender’s policies, procedures, practices, or business 

model; the extent and nature of any violations previously cited; and the institution’s remediation 

efforts. Additionally, the Bureau considers self-identified issues and whether the institution took 

appropriate corrective action when it identified those issues. We also closely monitor 

institutions’ compliance with orders arising from previous enforcement actions. Finally, we 

coordinate with other regulators to share and consider the results of our respective fair lending 

efforts.22

1.1.3 Quality of compliance management systems 

One critical piece of information the Bureau obtains through our supervisory work is the quality 

of an institution’s fair lending compliance management system, which is a key factor considered 

in the fair lending prioritization process. The Bureau has previously identified common features 

of a well-developed fair lending compliance management system,23 though we recognize that the 

appropriate scope of an institution’s fair lending compliance management system will vary 

based on its size, complexity, and risk profile. 

 

22 Other regulators may take into account the Bureau’s fair lending findings in their evaluations of lender compliance 

with the Fair Housing Act, performance under the Community Reinvestment Act, or in conjunction with the review 

of merger/acquisition applications and other similar applications. 

23 See Fair Lending Report of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 13-14 (Apr. 2014), available at 

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201404_cfpb_report_fair-lending.pdf. 
17 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

Many CFPB-supervised institutions face similar fair lending risks, but they may differ in how 

they manage those risks, based on their size, complexity, and risk profile. A key consideration is 

that, the lower the quality of an institution’s fair lending compliance management system, the 

less likely that the institution will identify and effectively address fair lending risks. As a result, a 

lower quality fair lending compliance management system generally indicates a higher fair 

lending risk to consumers. 

1.1.4 Data analysis 

The Bureau’s fair lending prioritization process is also driven by quantitative data analysis that 

evaluates developments and trends at the institution and market levels. For example, in the 

housing finance marketplace, HMDA data allow regulators to assess a specific institution’s risk 

as well as risk across the market in order to identify those institutions or segments that appear 

to present heightened fair lending risk to consumers. Such analyses can be particularly useful in 

identifying those lenders that appear to deviate significantly from their peers in, for example, 

the extent to which they provide access to credit in communities of color. 

1.1.5 Market insights 

The Office of Fair Lending works closely with all of the Bureau’s markets offices, which monitor 

consumer financial markets to identify emerging developments and trends. These offices 

monitor key consumer financial products and services, including mortgages, credit cards, auto 

lending, consumer reporting, installment lending, student lending, and payday lending. The 

Bureau uses market intelligence and the trends identified by our markets offices to provide 

insight into the markets we oversee and to identify fair lending risks in a given market that may 

require further study or attention. For example, our work with the Office of Installment Lending 

and Collections Markets has assisted in our understanding of indirect auto lenders’ business 

models and pricing policies. Information on fair lending risks in a market is then incorporated 

into our risk-based prioritization process to determine the level of attention needed in a market 

and our focus within that market. 

Based on our evaluation of the information and data gathered from the sources above, this year 

we identified mortgage lending (including both origination and servicing), auto finance, and 

credit cards as priority markets for our fair lending supervision and enforcement work. We also 
18 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

identified small business lending as a priority market in connection with the Bureau’s 

exploration of the issues that will need to be addressed in the rulemaking required under 

Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act, which amended ECOA to require financial institutions to 

collect and report data on lending to women-owned, minority-owned, and small businesses.24

We remain committed to assessing and evaluating fair lending risk in all credit markets under 

the Bureau’s authority. 

1.1.6 Addressing areas of potential fair lending harm 

Once fair lending risks are identified and prioritized through our risk-based prioritization 

process, the Office of Fair Lending considers, as part of its strategic planning process, how best 

to address those risks and which resources to dispatch to address the risks. 

The Bureau’s fair lending risk-based prioritization is an ongoing rather than a static process. 

Even after priorities are identified and steps are taken to effectuate those priorities, we continue 

to receive and consider information relevant to prioritization. At an institution level, such 

information may include new whistleblower tips and leads; additional risks identified in ongoing 

supervisory and enforcement activities; and compliance issues identified and brought to our 

attention by institutions themselves. 

The Office of Fair Lending considers a number of factors in determining how best to address this 

new information. Such factors may include the nature and extent of the fair lending risk; the 

degree of consumer harm involved; whether the risk appears to be isolated or widespread within 

a market; whether the risk was self-identified and/or self-disclosed to the Bureau; and the 

nature and extent of an institution’s remediation plans. Based on these and other factors, the 

Office of Fair Lending may decide to initiate supervisory or enforcement activity, conduct 

additional research or ongoing monitoring of particular issues or institutions, issue guidance, 

leverage outreach events, or engage in other activity within the Bureau’s authority. Fair Lending 

 

24 Dodd-Frank Act § 1071(a) (codified at 15 U.S.C. § 1691c-2(a)). 
19 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

takes account of responsible conduct as set forth in CFPB Bulletin 2013-06, Responsible 

Business Conduct: Self-Policing, Self-Reporting, Remediation, and Cooperation.25

 

25 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Responsible Business Conduct: Self-Policing, Self-Reporting, Remediation, 

and Cooperation 2013-06 (June 25, 2013), available at

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201306_cfpb_bulletin_responsible-conduct.pdf. 
20 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

2. Fair Lending supervision 

The CFPB’s Fair Lending Supervision program assesses compliance with Federal consumer 

financial laws and regulations at banks and nonbanks over which the Bureau has supervisory 

authority. Supervision activities range from assessments of institutions’ fair lending compliance 

management systems to in-depth reviews of products or activities that may pose heightened fair 

lending risks to consumers. As part of its Fair Lending Supervision program, the Bureau 

continues to conduct three types of fair lending reviews at Bureau-supervised institutions: 

ECOA baseline reviews, ECOA targeted reviews, and HMDA data integrity reviews. Our 

supervisory work has focused in the priority areas of mortgage, auto lending, credit cards, and 

small business lending. 

When the CFPB identifies situations in which fair lending compliance is inadequate, it directs 

institutions to establish fair lending compliance programs commensurate with the size and 

complexity of the institution and its lines of business. When fair lending violations have been 

identified, the CFPB may direct institutions to provide remediation and restitution to 

consumers, and may pursue other appropriate relief. The CFPB also refers a matter to the 

Justice Department when it has reason to believe that a creditor has engaged in a pattern or 

practice of lending discrimination in violation of ECOA.26 The CFPB may also refer other 

potential ECOA violations to the Justice Department. 

 

26 15 U.S.C. § 1691e(g). 
21 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

2.1 Fair Lending supervisory observations 

Although the Bureau’s supervisory process is confidential, the Bureau publishes regular reports 

called Supervisory Highlights, which provide information on supervisory trends the Bureau 

observes without identifying specific entities. The Bureau may also draw on its supervisory 

experience to publish compliance bulletins in order to remind the institutions that we supervise 

of their legal obligations. Industry participants can use this information to inform and assist in 

complying with ECOA and HMDA. Throughout the year, the Office of Fair Lending, in 

coordination with other offices within the Division of Supervision, Enforcement and Fair 

Lending, engages in outreach to provide information on trends from the Bureau’s supervisory 

experience as it relates to fair lending risk. 

2.1.1 Adverse action notice deficiencies 

Regulation B requires a creditor to notify an applicant of an adverse action on the application 

taken within 30 days after receiving a completed application.27 The notice must be in writing 

and contain a statement of the action taken; the name and address of the creditor; a statement 

describing the provisions of section 701(a) of ECOA; the name and address of the Federal agency 

that administers compliance with respect to the creditor; and either a statement of the specific 

reasons for the action taken, or a disclosure of the applicant’s right to a statement of specific 

reasons within 30 days, if the statement is requested within 60 days of the creditor’s 

notification.28

In the Winter 2015 edition of Supervisory Highlights, the Office of Fair Lending described 

supervisory observations of instances in which supervised entities failed to provide the requisite 

information in denial notices as set forth in Regulation B and failed to notify an applicant of 

 

27 12 C.F.R. § 1002.9(a)(1)(i). 

28 15 U.S.C. § 1691 et seq.; 12 C.F.R. § 1002.9(a)(2). 
22 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

action taken within 30 days after receiving the completed application.29 These errors were 

attributed to weaknesses in the compliance audit programs and the monitoring and corrective 

action component of the compliance programs.30 In instances where these violations have been 

observed, the Bureau has directed the supervised entities to conduct a review of all mortgage 

loan applications denied within the relevant time period and take appropriate corrective action, 

including providing corrected notices to applicants.31

2.1.2 Consideration of protected forms of income 

In 2015, the Bureau published guidance in Supervisory Highlights and in a compliance bulletin 

to remind industry stakeholders and consumers of ECOA and Regulation B provisions regarding 

consideration of protected sources of income. ECOA forbids a creditor from discriminating 

against any applicant “because all or part of the applicant’s income derives from any public 

assistance program.”32 Regulation B states that a creditor “shall not . . . exclude from 

consideration the income of an applicant . . . because of a prohibited basis or because the income 

is derived from part-time employment or is an annuity, pension, or other retirement 

benefit . . . .”33 Regulation B also states that a “creditor shall not make any . . . written statement, 

in advertising or otherwise, to applicants or prospective applicants that would discourage on a 

prohibited basis a reasonable person from making or pursuing an application.”34 

 

29 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Supervisory Highlights Winter 2015 at 12 (March 11, 2015), available at

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201503_cfpb_supervisory-highlights-winter-2015.pdf

30 Id.

31 Id. 

32 15 U.S.C. § 1691(a)(2). 

33 12 C.F.R. § 1002.6(b)(5). Regulation B also states that “[w]hen an applicant relies on alimony, child support, or 

separate maintenance payments in applying for credit, the creditor shall consider such payments as income to the 

extent that they are likely to be consistently made.” Id.

34 Id. at § 1002.4(b). 
23 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

The Winter 2015 edition of Supervisory Highlights discussed supervisory observations during 

recent examinations of instances in which Bureau examination staff found one or more 

violations of ECOA and Regulation B related to the treatment of protected sources of income.35 

Applicants were automatically declined if they sought to rely on income from a non-employment 

source, such as Social Security income or retirement benefits, in order to repay the loan. 

Marketing materials contained written statements regarding the prohibition and may have 

discouraged applicants who received public assistance or other protected sources of income 

from applying for credit. 

While the general rules governing the prohibition against consideration of protected sources of 

income include narrow exceptions (e.g., while a creditor may not consider the fact that an 

applicant receives public assistance income, the creditor can consider “[t]he length of time an 

applicant will likely remain eligible to receive such income”36), for these exceptions to apply, an 

institution must analyze each applicant’s particular situation.37 A blanket practice of denying 

any applicant who relies on public assistance income, or a specific form of public assistance 

income, without an assessment of an applicant’s particular situation, may violate ECOA and 

Regulation B. 

The relevant supervised entities were directed by examination staff to identify mortgage 

applicants who were wrongly denied on the basis of their protected income source, as well as 

prospective applicants who were discouraged by the marketing materials. Supervision also 

directed that remediation be made to harmed applicants and prospective applicants, including 

reimbursement of fees and interest; the opportunity to reapply; and additional remuneration for 

any consumers who were improperly denied and subsequently lost their homes. 

 

35 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Supervisory Highlights Winter 2015 at 13 (March 11, 2015), available at 

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201503_cfpb_supervisory-highlights-winter-2015.pdf. 

36 See Official Interpretations, 12 C.F.R. § 1002, ¶ 6(b)(2)-6 (Supp. I). 

37 See id. (“When considering income derived from a public assistance program, a creditor may take into account, for 

example: i. The length of time an applicant will likely remain eligible to receive such income. ii. Whether the 

applicant will continue to qualify for benefits based on the status of the applicant’s dependents (as in the case of 

Temporary Aid to Needy Families, or social security payments to a minor).”). 
24 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

The Winter 2015 edition of Supervisory Highlights38 also emphasized guidance issued in the 

Bureau’s November 18, 2014 bulletin on avoiding prohibited discrimination against consumers 

receiving Social Security disability income.39 The bulletin reminded lenders that requiring 

unnecessary documentation from consumers who receive Social Security disability income 

raises fair lending concerns, and called attention to standards and guidelines that may help 

lenders comply with the law. 

2.1.3 Consideration of protected forms of income: Section 8 

Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Program 

The Summer 2015 edition of Supervisory Highlights40 and the CFPB bulletin issued on May 11, 

2015, provide guidance to help lenders avoid prohibited discrimination against consumers 

receiving public assistance income.41 Specifically, the bulletin reminds creditors of their 

obligations under ECOA and Regulation B to provide non-discriminatory access to credit for 

mortgage applicants by considering income from the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) 

Homeownership Program. 

The Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program was created to assist low-income, first-time 

homebuyers in purchasing homes. The program is a component of the Department of Housing 

and Urban Development’s (HUD) broader Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program, which 

 

38 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Supervisory Highlights Winter 2015 at 18 (March 11, 2015), available at 

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201503_cfpb_supervisory-highlights-winter-2015.pdf. 

39 See Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Social Security Disability Income Verification Bulletin 2014-03 

(November 18, 2014), available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201411_cfpb_bulletin_disability-income.pdf.

40 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Supervisory Highlights Summer 2015 at 20 (June 23, 2015), available at 

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201506_cfpb_supervisory-highlights.pdf. 

41 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Program Bulletin 

2015-02 (May 11, 2015), available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201505_cfpb_bulletin-section-8-housingchoice-voucher-homeownership-program.pdf. 
25 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

also includes a rental assistance program.42 These programs are funded by HUD and 

administered by participating local Public Housing Authorities (PHAs). Through the Section 8 

HCV Homeownership Program, the participating PHA may provide an eligible consumer with a 

monthly housing assistance payment to help pay for homeownership expenses associated with a 

housing unit purchased in accordance with HUD’s regulations.43 In addition to HUD’s 

regulations, the PHAs may also adopt additional requirements, including lender qualifications 

or terms of financing.44

As stated above, ECOA and Regulation B prohibit creditors from discriminating in any aspect of 

a credit transaction against an applicant “because all or part of the applicant’s income derives 

from any public assistance program.”45 “Any Federal, state, or local governmental assistance 

program that provides a continuing, periodic income supplement, whether premised on 

entitlement or need, is ‘public assistance’ for purposes of the regulation. The term includes (but 

is not limited to) . . . mortgage supplement or assistance programs . . . .”46 As such, mortgage 

assistance provided under the Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program is income derived from 

a public assistance program under ECOA and Regulation B. 

Regulation B further provides that “[i]n a judgmental system of evaluating creditworthiness, a 

creditor may consider . . . whether an applicant’s income derives from any public assistance 

 

42 “Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Program” refers to the homeownership assistance program 

authorized by the Quality Housing & Work Responsibility Act of 1998 (Pub. L. No. 105-276, approved October 21, 

1998; 112 Stat. 2461), and the applicable implementing regulations, 24 C.F.R. §§ 982.625-982.643. The program is 

also referred to as the Voucher Homeownership Program, the Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Option, or 

the Section 8 Homeownership Program. 

43 24 C.F.R. § 982.625(c). 

44 Id. at § 982.632(a). 

45 15 U.S.C. § 1691(a)(2); 12 C.F.R. §§ 1002.2(z), 1002.4(a). 

46 Official Interpretations, 12 C.F.R.§ 1002.2, ¶ 2(z)-3 (Supp. I). 
26 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

program only for the purpose of determining a pertinent element of creditworthiness.”47

However, “[i]n considering the separate components of an applicant’s income, the creditor may 

not automatically discount or exclude from consideration any protected income. Any 

discounting or exclusion must be based on the applicant's actual circumstances.”48 Accordingly, 

a blanket practice of excluding or refusing to consider Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program 

vouchers as a source of income or accepting the vouchers only for certain mortgage loan 

products or delivery channels, without an assessment of an applicant’s particular situation, may 

violate ECOA and Regulation B. 

Through the supervisory process, the Bureau has become aware of one or more institutions 

excluding or refusing to consider income derived from the Section 8 HCV Homeownership 

Program during the mortgage loan application and underwriting process. Some institutions 

have restricted the use of Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program vouchers to only certain 

home mortgage loan products or delivery channels. Supervision has required one or more 

institutions to update their policies and procedures to ensure that their practices concerning 

Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program vouchers comply with ECOA and its implementing 

regulation, Regulation B. In addition, Supervision has required one or more institutions to 

identify borrowers who, due to their reliance on Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program 

vouchers, were either denied loans, or discouraged from applying; and to provide those 

borrowers with financial remuneration and an opportunity to reapply. 

2.1.4 Underwriting disparity findings and remedial actions 

The Fall 2015 edition of Supervisory Highlights detailed the Bureau’s supervisory work on 

ECOA targeted reviews that analyze an institution’s underwriting practices. It describes the 

Bureau’s supervisory underwriting reviews, methodologies used to understand underwriting 

outcomes and identify potential disparities, file selection methods, and guidance to institutions 

 

47 12 C.F.R § 1002.6(b)(2)(iii). 

48 Official Interpretations, 12 C.F.R. § 1002.6 ¶ 6(b)(5)-3(ii) (Supp. I). 
27 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

on managing fair lending risks in underwriting.49 

CFPB examination teams conduct targeted ECOA reviews to evaluate areas of heightened fair 

lending risk. These reviews generally focus on a specific line of business, such as mortgages, 

credit cards, automobile finance or small business lending. Our underwriting reviews typically 

include a statistical analysis, and in some cases a loan file review, that assess an institution’s 

compliance with ECOA and its implementing regulation, Regulation B, within the specific 

business line selected. 

In each examination where a file review is conducted, the review is tailored to the specific 

heightened areas of risk that have previously been identified. If the examiners identify examples 

of files that may provide evidence of discrimination, they share the files with the institution to 

obtain the institution’s explanation. If, following the statistical analysis and the file review, the 

examination team believes that there may be a violation of ECOA, the CFPB may share the 

findings with the institution in a Potential Action and Request for Response for Fair Lending 

letter (detailed below). 

We noted that CFPB examination teams have conducted numerous examinations to determine 

whether statistical disparities in underwriting outcomes attributable to race, national origin, or 

some other prohibited basis characteristic constituted a violation of ECOA. Many of these 

examinations have concluded without findings of discrimination. In one or more examinations, 

however, examiners concluded that the disparities resulted from illegal discrimination in 

violation of ECOA. 

When examiners identify underwriting disparities that violate ECOA, the Bureau will require the 

institution to pay remuneration to affected borrowers, which may include application or other 

fees, costs, and other damages. Institutions also may be required to re-offer credit. In addition, 

institutions must identify and address any underlying compliance management system (CMS) 

weaknesses that led to the violations. 

 

49 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Supervisory Highlights Fall 2015 at 27 (November 3, 2015), available at

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201510_cfpb_supervisory-highlights.pdf. 
28 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

2.2 Potential Action and Request for 

Response for Fair Lending (PARR-FL) 

letters 

In the event that the Bureau is considering formal action, the Bureau may send a Potential 

Action and Request for Response for Fair Lending (PARR-FL) letter to the institution.50 As part 

of the examination process, the Bureau sends a PARR-FL letter to provide the entity notice of 

preliminary findings of violation(s) of Federal consumer financial law. The PARR-FL letter also 

notifies the entity that the Bureau is considering taking supervisory action, such as a non-public 

memorandum of understanding, or a public enforcement action, based on the potential 

violations identified and described in the letter. If there is a potential ECOA violation that could 

be referred to the DOJ, the PARR-FL letter provides the entity notice of the potential for a 

referral. 

Generally, a PARR-FL letter will: 

 Identify the laws that the Bureau has preliminarily identified may have been violated and 

describe the possible illegal conduct; 

 Generally describe the types of relief available to the Bureau; 

 Inform the relevant institution of its opportunity to submit a written response presenting 

its positions regarding relevant legal and policy issues, as well as facts through affidavits 

or declarations; 

 Describe the manner and form by which the institution should respond, if it chooses to 

do so, and provide a submission deadline, generally 14 calendar days, for timely 

consideration; 

 

50 A recent issue of Supervisory Highlights described non-Fair Lending PARR letters and the ARC process. See 

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Supervisory Highlights Summer 2015 at 27 (June 23, 2015), available at

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201506_cfpb_supervisory-highlights.pdf.
29 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

 Inform the relevant institution that the Bureau is considering recommending corrective 

action; and 

 When appropriate, inform the relevant institution that the Office of Fair Lending is 

considering recommending that the Bureau refer the institution to the DOJ. 

Typically, when a PARR-FL letter results from supervisory activity, the Bureau will send the 

PARR-FL letter prior to finalizing the examination report or supervisory letter. The Bureau 

carefully considers the institution’s response before reaching a final decision about whether to 

cite an ECOA violation, what corrective action to take, and, as appropriate, whether to refer the 

matter to the DOJ. Depending on the response, the Bureau may determine that there is no 

violation of law, and that, therefore, neither corrective action nor a referral is appropriate. If the 

Bureau finds a violation, the examination report or supervisory letter will convey the final 

findings to the institution, the Bureau will seek appropriate corrective action, and the Bureau 

will inform the institution of any referral of the matter to the DOJ. 

2.3 ECOA baseline modules update 

On October 30, 2015, the CFPB published an update to the ECOA Baseline Review Modules, 

which are part of the CFPB Supervision and Examination Manual. Examination teams use the 

ECOA Baseline Review Modules to conduct ECOA Baseline Reviews, which evaluate how well 

institutions’ compliance management systems identify and manage fair lending risks. The 

revised Baseline Review modules better align in content and organization with the CFPB’s 

examination procedures for CMS. The revised modules are consistent with the FFIEC 

Interagency Fair Lending Examination Procedures and organized by fair lending risk areas, such 

as origination and servicing. In addition, the fifth module, “Fair Lending Risks Related to 

Models,” is a new module that examiners will use to review empirical models that supervised 

financial institutions may use.

When using the modules to conduct an ECOA Baseline Review, CFPB examination teams review 

an institution’s fair lending supervisory history, including any history of fair lending risks or 

violations previously identified by the CFPB or any other federal or state regulator. Examination 

teams collect and evaluate information about an entity’s fair lending compliance program, 

including board of director and management participation, policies and procedures, training 

materials, internal controls and monitoring and corrective action. In addition to responses 
30 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

obtained pursuant to information requests, examination teams may also review other sources of 

information, including any publicly-available information about the entity as well as 

information obtained through interviews with an institution’s staff or supervisory meetings with 

an institution. Examiners may complete one or more modules as part of a broader review of 

compliance within an institution product line. For example, in order to evaluate fair lending 

risks related to mortgage servicing, examination teams may use Module IV, Fair Lending Risks 

Related to Servicing. This module includes questions on such topics as servicing consumers with 

Limited English Proficiency and policies and procedures related to the offering of hardship 

and/or loss mitigation options.

The updated ECOA Baseline Review Modules and the CFPB Supervision and Examination 

Manual can be found on the Bureau’s website at www.consumerfinance.gov. 
31 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

3. Fair Lending enforcement 

The Bureau conducts investigations of potential violations of HMDA and ECOA, and if it 

believes a violation has occurred, can file a complaint either through its administrative 

enforcement process or in federal court. Like the other federal bank regulators, the Bureau 

refers matters to the DOJ when it has reason to believe that a creditor has engaged in a pattern 

or practice of lending discrimination.51 However, when the Bureau makes a referral to the DOJ, 

the Bureau can still take its own independent action to address a violation. In 2015, the Bureau 

announced four fair lending enforcement actions, in mortgage origination and indirect auto 

lending. The Bureau also has a number of ongoing fair lending investigations and has authority 

to settle or sue in a number of matters. 

3.1 Fair Lending public enforcement actions 

3.1.1 Mortgage 

Hudson City Savings Bank 

On September 24, 2015, the CFPB and the DOJ filed a joint complaint against Hudson City 

Savings Bank (Hudson City) alleging discriminatory redlining practices in mortgage lending and 

 

51 15 U.S.C. § 1691e(g). 
32 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

a proposed consent order to resolve the complaint.52 The complaint alleges that from at least 

2009 to 2013 Hudson City illegally redlined by providing unequal access to credit to 

neighborhoods in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. Specifically, Hudson 

City structured its business to avoid and thereby discourage residents in majority-Black-andHispanic neighborhoods from accessing mortgages. The consent order requires Hudson City to 

pay $25 million in direct loan subsidies to qualified borrowers in the affected communities, 

$2.25 million in community programs and outreach, and a $5.5 million penalty. This represents 

the largest redlining settlement in history as measured by such direct subsidies. On October 30, 

2015, Hudson City was acquired by M&T Bank Corporation, and Hudson City was merged into 

Manufacturers Banking and Trust Company (M&T Bank), with M&T Bank as the surviving 

institution. As the successor to Hudson City, M&T Bank is responsible for carrying out the terms 

of the Consent Order. 

Hudson City was a federally-chartered savings association with 135 branches and assets of $35.4 

billion and focused its lending on the origination and purchase of mortgage loans secured by 

single-family properties. According to the complaint, Hudson City illegally avoided and thereby 

discouraged consumers in majority-Black-and-Hispanic neighborhoods from applying for credit 

by: 

 Placing branches and loan officers principally outside of majority-Black-and-Hispanic 

communities; 

 Selecting mortgage brokers that were mostly located outside of, and did not effectively 

serve, majority-Black-and-Hispanic communities; 

 Focusing its limited marketing in neighborhoods with relatively few Black and Hispanic 

residents; and 

 

52 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Hudson City Savings Bank, F.S.B., No. 2:15-cv-07056-CCC-JBC (D.N.J. 

Sept. 24, 2015) (complaint), available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201509_cfpb_hudson-city-jointcomplaint.pdf.
33 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

 Excluding majority-Black-and-Hispanic neighborhoods from its credit assessment areas. 

The consent order, which was entered by the court on November 4, 2015,53 requires Hudson City 

to pay $25 million to a loan subsidy program that will offer residents in majority-Black-andHispanic neighborhoods in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania mortgage 

loans on a more affordable basis than otherwise available from Hudson City; spend $1 million 

on targeted advertising and outreach to generate applications for mortgage loans from qualified 

residents in the affected majority-Black-and-Hispanic neighborhoods; spend $750,000 on local 

partnerships with community-based or governmental organizations that provide assistance to 

residents in majority-Black-and-Hispanic neighborhoods; and spend $500,000 on consumer 

education, including credit counseling and financial literacy. In addition to the monetary 

requirements, the decree orders Hudson City to open two full-service branches in majorityBlack-and-Hispanic communities, expand its assessment areas to include majority-Black-andHispanic communities, assess the credit needs of majority-Black-and-Hispanic communities, 

and develop a fair lending compliance and training program. 

Provident Funding Associates 

On May 28, 2015, the CFPB and the DOJ filed a joint complaint against Provident Funding 

Associates (Provident) alleging discrimination in mortgage lending, along with a proposed order 

to settle the complaint.54 The complaint alleges that from 2006 to 2011, Provident discriminated 

in violation of ECOA by charging over 14,000 African-American and Hispanic borrowers more 

in brokers’ fees than similarly-situated non-Hispanic White borrowers on the basis of race and 

 

53 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Hudson City Savings Bank, F.S.B., No. 2:15-cv-07056-CCC-JBC (D. N.J. 

Sept. 24, 2015) (consent order), available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201511_cfpb_hudson-cityconsent-order.pdf. 

54 United States and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Provident Funding Associates, L.P., No. 3:15-cv-023-

73 (N.D. Cal. May 28, 2015) (complaint), available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201505_cfpb_complaintprovident-funding-associates.pdf. 
34 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

national origin. Provident is required under the order to pay $9 million in damages to harmed 

African-American and Hispanic borrowers. 

Provident is headquartered in California and originates mortgage loans through its nationwide 

network of brokers. Between 2006 and 2011, Provident made over 450,000 mortgage loans 

through its brokers. During this time period, Provident’s practice was to set a risk-based interest 

rate and then allow brokers to charge a higher rate to consumers. Provident would then pay the 

brokers some of the increased interest revenue from the higher rates – these payments are also 

known as yield spread premiums. Provident’s mortgage brokers also had discretion to charge 

borrowers higher fees. The fees paid to Provident’s brokers were thus made up of these two 

components: payments by Provident from increased interest revenue and through the direct fees 

paid by the borrower. 

The CFPB and the DOJ alleged that Provident violated ECOA by charging African-American and 

Hispanic borrowers more in total broker fees than non-Hispanic White borrowers based on 

their race and national origin and not based on their credit risk. The DOJ also alleged that 

Provident violated the Fair Housing Act, which also prohibits discrimination in residential 

mortgage lending. The agencies alleged that Provident’s discretionary broker compensation 

policies caused the differences in total broker fees, and that Provident unlawfully discriminated 

against African-American and Hispanic borrowers in mortgage pricing. Approximately 14,000 

African-American and Hispanic borrowers paid higher total broker fees because of this 

discrimination. 

The consent order, which was entered by the court on June 18, 2015, requires Provident to pay 

$9 million to harmed borrowers, to pay to hire a settlement administrator to distribute funds to 

the harmed borrowers identified by the CFPB and the DOJ, and to not discriminate against 

borrowers in assessing total broker fees.55 Provident will maintain the non-discretionary broker 

compensation policies and procedures it implemented in 2014. Provident’s current policy does 

not allow discretion in borrower- or lender-paid broker compensation because individual 

 

55 United States v. Provident Funding Associates, L.P., No. 3:15-cv-02373 (N.D. Cal. June 18, 2015) (consent order), 

available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201505_cfpb_consent-order-provident-funding-associates.pdf. 
35 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

brokers are unable to charge or collect different amounts of fees from different borrowers on a 

loan-by-loan basis. The consent order also requires that Provident continue to have in place a 

fair lending training program and broker monitoring program. 

Provident must hire a settlement administrator to distribute the $9 million to harmed 

borrowers. 

3.1.2 Auto Finance 

Fifth Third Bank 

On September 28, 2015, the CFPB resolved an action with Fifth Third Bank (Fifth Third) that 

requires Fifth Third to change its pricing and compensation system by substantially reducing or 

eliminating discretionary markups to minimize the risks of discrimination. On that same date, 

the DOJ also filed a complaint and proposed consent order in the U.S. District Court for the 

Southern District of Ohio addressing the same conduct. That consent order was entered by the 

court on October 1, 2015. Fifth Third’s past practices resulted in thousands of African-American 

and Hispanic borrowers paying higher interest rates than similarly-situated non-Hispanic White 

borrowers for their auto loans. The consent orders require Fifth Third to pay $18 million in 

restitution to affected borrowers.56

As of the second quarter of 2015, Fifth Third was the ninth largest depository auto loan lender in 

the United States and the seventeenth largest auto loan lender overall. As an indirect auto 

lender, Fifth Third sets a risk-based interest rate, or “buy rate,” that it conveys to auto dealers. 

Fifth Third then allows auto dealers to charge a higher interest rate when they finalize the 

transaction with the consumer. As described above, this is typically called “discretionary 

markup.” Markups can generate compensation for dealers while giving them the discretion to 

charge similarly-situated consumers different rates. Fifth Third’s policy permitted dealers to 

mark up consumers’ interest rates as much as 2.5% during the period under review. 

 

56 In re, Fifth Third Bank, No. 2015-CFPB-0024 (Sept. 28, 2015) (consent order), available at 

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201509_cfpb_consent-order-fifth-third-bank.pdf. 
36 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

From January 2013 through May 2013, the Bureau conducted an examination that reviewed 

Fifth Third’s indirect auto lending business for compliance with ECOA and Regulation B. On 

March 6, 2015, the Bureau referred the matter to the DOJ. The CFPB found and the DOJ alleged 

that Fifth Third’s indirect lending policies resulted in minority borrowers paying higher 

discretionary markups, and that Fifth Third violated ECOA by charging African-American and 

Hispanic borrowers higher discretionary markups for their auto loans than non-Hispanic White 

borrowers without regard to the creditworthiness of the borrowers. Fifth Third’s discriminatory 

pricing and compensation structure resulted in thousands of minority borrowers paying, on 

average, over $200 more for their auto loans originated between January 2010 and September 

2015. 

The CFPB’s administrative consent order and the DOJ’s consent order require Fifth Third to 

reduce dealer discretion to mark up the interest rate to a maximum of 1.25% for auto loans with 

terms of five years or less, and 1% for auto loans with longer terms, or move to non-discretionary 

dealer compensation. Fifth Third is also required to pay $18 million to affected AfricanAmerican and Hispanic borrowers whose auto loans were financed by Fifth Third between 

January 2010 and September 2015. The Bureau did not assess penalties against Fifth Third 

because of the bank’s responsible conduct, namely the proactive steps the bank is taking that 

directly address the fair lending risk of discretionary pricing and compensation systems by 

substantially reducing or eliminating that discretion altogether. In addition, Fifth Third Bank 

must hire a settlement administrator who will contact consumers, distribute the funds, and 

ensure that affected borrowers receive compensation. 

American Honda Finance Corporation 

On July 14, 2015, the CFPB resolved an action with American Honda Finance Corporation 

(Honda) that, like Fifth Third Bank, requires Honda to change its pricing and compensation 

system by substantially reducing or eliminating discretionary markups to minimize the risks of 
37 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

discrimination.57 On that same date, the DOJ also filed a complaint and proposed consent order 

in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California addressing the same conduct. That 

consent order was entered by the court on July 16, 2015. Honda’s past practices resulted in 

thousands of African-American, Hispanic, and Asian and Pacific Islander borrowers paying 

higher interest rates than similarly-situated non-Hispanic White borrowers for their auto loans. 

As part of the enforcement action, Honda is required to pay $24 million in restitution to affected 

borrowers. 

Honda is wholly-owned by American Honda Motor Co., Inc. and as of the first quarter of 2015, 

Honda was the fourth largest captive auto lender in the United States and the ninth largest auto 

lender overall. As an indirect auto lender, Honda sets a risk-based interest rate, or “buy rate,” 

that it conveys to auto dealers. Honda then allows auto dealers to charge a higher interest rate 

when they finalize the transaction with the consumer. As described above, this is typically called 

“discretionary markup.” The discretionary markups can generate compensation for dealers 

while giving them the discretion to charge similarly-situated consumers different rates. Honda 

permitted dealers to mark up consumers’ risk-based interest rates as much as 2.25% for 

contracts with terms of five years or less, and 2% for contracts with longer terms. 

The enforcement action was the result of a joint CFPB and DOJ investigation that began in April 

2013. The agencies investigated Honda’s indirect auto lending activities’ compliance with ECOA. 

The CFPB found and the DOJ alleged that Honda’s indirect lending policies resulted in minority 

borrowers paying higher discretionary markups and that Honda violated ECOA by charging 

African-American, Hispanic, and Asian and Pacific Islander borrowers higher discretionary 

markups for their auto loans than similarly-situated non-Hispanic White borrowers. Honda’s 

discriminatory pricing and compensation structure resulted in thousands of minority borrowers 

paying, on average, from $150 to over $250 more for their auto loans originated from January 

2011 through July 14, 2015. 

The CFPB’s administrative consent order and the DOJ’s consent order require Honda to reduce 

 

57 In re. American Honda Finance Corp., No. 2015-CFPB-0014 (July 14, 2015) (consent order), available at 

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201507_cfpb_consent-order_honda.pdf. 
38 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

dealer discretion to mark up the interest rate to a maximum of 1.25% for auto loans with terms 

of five years or less, and 1% for auto loans with longer terms, or move to non-discretionary 

dealer compensation. Honda is also required to pay $24 million to affected African-American, 

Hispanic, and Asian and Pacific Islander borrowers whose auto loans were financed by Honda 

between January 1, 2011 and July 14, 2015. As in the case of Fifth Third, the Bureau did not 

assess penalties against Honda because of Honda’s responsible conduct, namely the proactive 

steps the company took to directly address the fair lending risk of discretionary pricing and 

compensation systems by substantially reducing or eliminating that discretion altogether. In 

addition, Honda, through American Honda Motor Co., will contact consumers, distribute the 

funds, and ensure that affected borrowers receive compensation. 

3.2 Implementing public consent orders 

When an enforcement action is resolved through a public consent order, the Bureau (and the 

DOJ, where relevant) will take steps to ensure that the respondent or defendant complies with 

the requirements of the order. As appropriate to the specific requirements of individual public 

consent orders, the Bureau may take steps to ensure that borrowers who are eligible for 

compensation receive remuneration and that the defendant has implemented a comprehensive 

fair lending compliance management system. Throughout 2015, the Offices of Fair Lending and 

Supervision worked to implement and oversee compliance with three separate consent orders 

that were issued by federal courts or the Bureau’s Director in prior years. A description of these 

is included below. 

3.2.1 Settlement Administration 

 Synchrony Bank, formerly known as GE Capital Retail Bank 

On June 19, 2014, the CFPB, as part of a joint enforcement action with the DOJ, ordered 

Synchrony Bank, formerly known as GE Capital, to provide $169 million in relief to about 
39 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

108,000 borrowers excluded from debt relief offers because of their national origin.58 

As previously reported, Synchrony Bank had two different promotions that allowed credit card 

customers with delinquent accounts to address their outstanding balances, one by paying a 

specific amount to bring their account current in return for a statement credit and another by 

paying a specific amount in return for waiving the remaining account balance. However, it did 

not extend these offers to any customers who indicated that they preferred to communicate in 

Spanish and/or had a mailing address in Puerto Rico, even if the customer met the promotion’s 

qualifications. This practice denied consumers the opportunity to benefit from these promotions 

on the basis of national origin in direct violation of ECOA. This public enforcement action 

represented the federal government’s largest credit card discrimination settlement in history. 

In the course of administering the settlement, Synchrony Bank identified additional consumers 

who were excluded from these offers and had a mailing address in Puerto Rico or indicated a 

preference to communicate in Spanish. Synchrony Bank provided a total of approximately $201 

million in redress including payments, credits, interest, and debt forgiveness to approximately 

133,463 eligible consumers. This amount includes approximately $4 million of additional 

redress based on its identification of additional eligible consumers. Synchrony completed 

redress to consumers as of August 8, 2015. 

PNC Bank, as successor to National City Bank 

As previously reported, on December 23, 2013, the CFPB and the DOJ filed a joint complaint 

against National City Bank for discrimination in mortgage lending, along with a proposed order 

to settle the complaint. Specifically, the complaint alleged that National City Bank charged 

higher prices on mortgage loans to African-American and Hispanic borrowers than similarlysituated non-Hispanic White borrowers between 2002 and 2008. The consent order, which was 

entered on January 9, 2014 by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, 

required National City’s successor, PNC Bank, to pay $35 million in restitution to harmed 

 

58 In re. Synchrony Bank, f/k/a GE Capital Retail Bank, No. 2014-CFPB-0007 (June 19, 2014) (consent order), 

available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201406_cfpb_consent-order_synchrony-bank.pdf. 
40 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

African-American and Hispanic borrowers. The consent order also required PNC to pay to hire a 

settlement administrator to distribute funds to victims identified by the CFPB and the DOJ.59

In order to carry out the Bureau’s and the DOJ’s 2013 settlement with PNC, as successor in 

interest to National City Bank, the Bureau and the DOJ worked closely with the settlement 

administrator and PNC to distribute $35 million to harmed African-American and Hispanic 

borrowers. On September 16, 2014, the Bureau published a blog post (available in English60 and 

Spanish61) announcing the selection of the settlement administrator and providing information 

on contacting the administrator and submitting settlement forms. Under the supervision of the 

government agencies, the settlement administrator contacted over 90,000 borrowers who were 

eligible for compensation and made over 120,000 phone calls in an effort to ensure maximum 

participation. As of the participation deadline of February 17, 2015, borrowers on approximately 

74% of the affected loans responded to participate in the settlement. The settlement 

administrator mailed checks to participating borrowers totaling $35 million plus accrued 

interest on May 15, 2015. 

Ally Financial Inc. and Ally Bank 

On December 19, 2013, the CFPB and the DOJ entered into the federal government’s largest 

auto loan discrimination settlement in history62 which required Ally Financial Inc. and Ally 

Bank (Ally) to pay $80 million in damages to harmed African-American, Hispanic, and Asian 

 

59 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. National City Bank, No. 2:13-cv-01817-CB (W.D. Pa. Jan. 9, 2014) 

(consent order), available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201312_cfpb_consent_national-city-bank.pdf. 

60 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, National City Bank Settlement Administrator Will Contact 

Eligible Borrowers Soon (Sept. 16, 2014), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/national-city-banksettlement-administrator-will-contact-eligible-borrowers-soon/. 

61 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, El administrador de negociación del National City Bank 

pronto se pondrá en contacto con los prestatarios elegibles (Sept. 16, 2014), available at 

http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/el-administrador-de-negociacion-del-national-city-bank-pronto-sepondra-en-contacto-con-los-prestatarios-elegibles/.

62 In re. Ally Financial Inc., No. 2013-CFPB-0010 (Dec. 20, 2013) (consent order), available at

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201312_cfpb_consent-order_ally.pdf. 
41 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

and Pacific Islander borrowers. The CFPB found and the DOJ alleged that minority borrowers 

on more than 235,000 auto loans paid higher interest rates than similarly-situated nonHispanic White borrowers between April 2011 and December 2013 because of Ally’s 

discriminatory discretionary markup and compensation system. 

Ally hired a settlement administrator to distribute the $80 million in damages to harmed 

borrowers. On June 15, 2015, the Bureau published a blog post announcing the selection of the 

settlement administrator and providing information on contacting the administrator and 

submitting settlement forms.63 On June 26, 2015, the settlement administrator sent letters to 

Ally borrowers identified as potentially eligible for remediation from the settlement fund. 

Consumers had until October 2015 to respond, after which the agencies determined the final 

distribution amount for each eligible borrower. Following the conclusion of the participation 

period, Ally’s settlement administrator identified approximately 301,000 eligible, participating 

borrowers and co-borrowers—representing approximately 235,000 loans—who were 

overcharged as a result of Ally’s discriminatory pricing and compensation structure during the 

relevant time period. On January 29, 2016, the Ally settlement administrator mailed checks 

totaling $80 million plus accrued interest to harmed borrowers participating in the settlement.64

In addition to the $80 million in settlement payments for consumers who were overcharged 

between April 2011 and December 2013, Ally paid roughly $38.9 million to consumers that Ally 

determined were both eligible and overcharged on auto loans issued during 2014, pursuant to its 

continuing obligations under the terms of the orders. 

 

63 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Ally Settlement Administrator Will Contact Eligible 

Borrowers Soon (June 15, 2015), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/ally-settlementadministrator-will-contact-eligible-borrowers-soon/.

64 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Harmed Ally Borrowers Have Been Sent $80 Million in 

Damages (January 29, 2016), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/harmed-ally-borrowers-havebeen-sent-80-million-in-damages/. 
42 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

3.3 Equal Credit Opportunity Act referrals to 

the Department of Justice 

The CFPB must refer to the DOJ a matter when it has reason to believe that a creditor has 

engaged in a pattern or practice of lending discrimination in violation of ECOA.65 The CFPB also 

may refer other potential ECOA violations to the DOJ. In 2015, the CFPB referred eight matters 

to the DOJ. With respect to two of the eight matters referred to the DOJ, the DOJ declined to 

open an independent investigation and deferred to the Bureau’s handling of the matter. The 

CFPB’s referrals to the DOJ in 2015 covered a variety of practices, specifically discrimination in 

mortgage lending on the bases of the receipt of public assistance income, sex, marital status, 

race, color, and national origin, and discrimination in auto lending on the bases of age, receipt of 

public assistance income, sex, marital status, race, and national origin. 

3.4 Pending fair lending investigations 

In 2015 the Bureau had a number of ongoing fair lending investigations and authorized 

enforcement actions against a number of institutions. In particular, as mortgage lending is 

among the Bureau’s top priorities, the Bureau focused its fair lending enforcement efforts on 

addressing the unlawful practice of redlining. Redlining occurs when a lender provides unequal 

access to credit, or unequal terms of credit, because of the racial or ethnic composition of a 

neighborhood. At the end of 2015, the Bureau had a number of authorized enforcement actions 

in settlement negotiations and pending investigations. 

The Bureau is also focused on institutions’ indirect auto lending, specifically discrimination 

resulting from lender compensation policies that give auto dealers discretion to set loan prices. 

In 2015, the Bureau investigated several indirect auto lenders and at the end of 2015 had a 

number of authorized enforcement actions in settlement negotiations and pending 

 

65 15 U.S.C. § 1691e(g). 
43 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

investigations. 

Finally, the Bureau is also investigating other areas for potential discrimination. At the end of 

2015, the Bureau had a number of pending investigations in other markets including credit 

cards. 
44 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

4. Rulemaking and related 

guidance 

4.1 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act 

(Regulation C) 

In October 2015, the Bureau issued and published in the Federal Register a final rule to 

implement the Dodd-Frank amendments to HMDA.66 The rule also finalizes certain 

amendments that the Bureau believes are necessary to improve the utility of HMDA data, 

further the purposes of HMDA, improve the quality of HMDA data, and create a more 

transparent mortgage market. 

4.1.1 HMDA history 

HMDA was enacted 40 years ago to respond to redlining concerns and the effects of 

disinvestment in urban neighborhoods and to encourage reinvestment in the nation’s cities. The 

statute, as implemented by Regulation C, is intended to provide the public with loan data that 

can be used to help determine whether financial institutions are serving the housing needs of 

their communities; to assist public officials in distributing public-sector investment to attract 

 

66 80 Fed. Reg. 66,128 (Oct. 28, 2015), available at https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-10-28/pdf/2015-

26607.pdf; see 12 C.F.R. pt. 1003. 
45 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

private investment in communities where it is needed; and to assist in identifying possible 

discriminatory lending patterns and enforcing anti-discrimination statutes.67 HMDA data are 

also used for a range of mortgage market monitoring purposes by community groups, public 

officials, the financial industry, economists, academics, social scientists, regulators, and the 

media. Bank regulators and other agencies use HMDA to monitor compliance with and 

enforcement of the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) and federal anti-discrimination laws, 

including ECOA and the Fair Housing Act (FHA). 

The Dodd-Frank Act transferred rulemaking authority for HMDA to the Bureau, effective July 

2011. It also amended HMDA to require financial institutions to report new data points and 

authorized the Bureau to require financial institutions to collect, record, and report additional 

information. 

4.1.2 Rule history 

On August 29, 2014, the Bureau published in the Federal Register a proposed rule to implement 

changes to Regulation C and sought public comment on the proposal.68 The comment period ran 

through the end of October 2014. The Bureau received approximately 400 comments on its 

HMDA proposal. Commenters included consumer advocacy groups; national, State, and 

regional industry trade associations; banks; credit unions; software providers; housing 

counselors; academics; and others. The Bureau also consulted with or offered to consult with the 

prudential regulators (the Federal Reserve Board (FRB), the Federal Deposit Insurance 

Corporation (FDIC), the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), and the Office of the 

Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)), the DOJ, HUD, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the 

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the FTC. 

 

67 12 U.S.C. § 2801 et seq. 

68 79 Fed. Reg. 51,732 (Aug. 29, 2014), available at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2014-08-29/pdf/2014-

18353.pdf. 
46 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

In adopting the final rule, the Bureau carefully reviewed and considered all of the comments it 

received, and published the final rule in the Federal Register on October 28, 2015 (the “HMDA 

Rule”). The Bureau has also issued a number of regulatory implementation tools and resources 

to assist industry in understanding and implementing the new rule’s requirements, which are 

available at www.consumerfinance.gov/hmda. 

4.1.3 Summary of Regulation C changes 

The rule modifies the types of institutions and transactions subject to Regulation C, adds new 

data reporting requirements, clarifies several existing data reporting requirements and modifies 

the processes for reporting and disclosing the required data. 

The HMDA Rule changes institutional coverage in two phases. First, to reduce burden on 

industry, certain lower-volume depository institutions will no longer be required to collect and 

report HMDA data beginning in 2017. A bank, savings association, or credit union will not be 

subject to Regulation C in 2017 unless it meets the asset-size, location, federally related, and 

loan activity tests under current Regulation C and it originates at least 25 home purchase loans, 

including refinancings of home purchase loans, in both 2015 and 2016. Second, effective 

January 1, 2018, the HMDA Rule adopts a uniform loan-volume threshold for all institutions. 

Beginning in 2018, an institution will be subject to Regulation C if it originated at least 25 

covered closed-end mortgage loan originations in each of the two preceding calendar years or at 

least 100 covered open-end lines of credit in each of the two preceding calendar years. Other 

applicable coverage requirements will apply, depending on the type of covered entity. 

The Rule also modifies the types of transactions covered under Regulation C. In general, the 

HMDA Rule adopts a dwelling-secured standard for transactional coverage. Beginning on 

January 1, 2018, covered loans under the HMDA Rule generally will include closed-end 

mortgage loans and open-end lines of credit secured by a dwelling and will not include 

unsecured loans. 

For HMDA data collected on or after January 1, 2018, covered institutions will collect, record, 

and report additional information on covered loans. New data points include those specifically 

identified in Dodd-Frank as well as others the Bureau determined will assist in carrying out 

HMDA’s purposes. The HMDA Rule adds new data points for applicant or borrower age, credit 

score, automated underwriting system information, debt-to-income ratio, combined loan-tovalue ratio, unique loan identifier, property value, application channel, points and fees, 
47 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

borrower-paid origination charges, discount points, lender credits, loan term, prepayment 

penalty, non-amortizing loan features, interest rate, and loan originator identifier as well as 

other data points. The HMDA Rule also modifies several existing data points. 

For data collected on or after January 1, 2018, the HMDA Rule amends the requirements for 

collection and reporting of information regarding an applicant’s or borrower’s ethnicity, race, 

and sex. First, a covered institution will report whether or not it collected the information on the 

basis of visual observation or surname. Second, covered institutions must permit applicants to 

self-identify their ethnicity and race using disaggregated ethnic and racial subcategories. 

However, the HMDA Rule will not require or permit covered institutions to use the 

disaggregated subcategories when identifying the applicant’s or borrower’s ethnicity and race 

based on visual observation or surname. 

The Bureau is developing a new web-based submission tool for reporting HMDA data, which 

covered institutions will use beginning in 2018. Regulation C’s appendix A is amended effective 

January 1, 2018 to include new transition requirements for data collected in 2017 and reported 

in 2018. Covered institutions will be required to electronically submit their loan application 

registers (LARs). Beginning with data collected in 2018 and reported in 2019, covered 

institutions will report the new dataset required by the HMDA Rule, using revised procedures 

that will be available at www.consumerfinance.gov/hmda. 

Beginning in 2020, the HMDA Rule requires quarterly reporting for covered institutions that 

reported a combined total of at least 60,000 applications and covered loans in the preceding 

calendar year. An institution will not count covered loans that it purchased in the preceding 

calendar year when determining whether it is required to report on a quarterly basis. The first 

quarterly submission will be due by May 30, 2020. 

Beginning in 2018, covered institutions will no longer be required to provide a disclosure 

statement or a modified LAR to the public upon request. Instead, in response to a request, a 

covered institution will provide a notice that its disclosure statement and modified LAR are 

available on the Bureau’s website. These revised disclosure requirements will apply to data 

collected on or after January 1, 2017 and reported in or after 2018. 

For data collected in or after 2018 and reported in or after 2019, the Bureau will use a balancing 

test to determine whether and, if so, how HMDA data should be modified prior to its disclosure 

in order to protect applicant and borrower privacy while also fulfilling HMDA’s disclosure 

purposes. At a later date, the Bureau will provide a process for the public to provide input 
48 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

regarding the application of this balancing test to determine the HMDA data to be publicly 

disclosed. 

4.1.4 Reducing industry burden 

The Bureau took a number of steps to reduce industry burden while ensuring HMDA data are 

useful and reflective of the current housing finance market. A key part of this balancing is 

ensuring an adequate implementation period. Most provisions of the HMDA Rule go into effect 

on January 1, 2018—more than two years after publication of the Rule—and apply to data 

collected in 2018 and reported in 2019 or later years. At the same time, an institutional coverage 

change that will reduce the number of depository institutions that need to report is effective 

earlier: on January 1, 2017. Institutions subject to the new quarterly reporting requirement will 

have additional time to prepare: that requirement is effective on January 1, 2020, and the first 

quarterly submission will be due by May 30, 2020. 

As with all of its rules, the Bureau continues to look for ways to help the mortgage industry 

implement the new mortgage lending data reporting rules, and has created regulatory 

implementation resources that are available online. These resources include an overview of the 

final rule, a plain-language compliance guide, a timeline with various effective dates, a decision 

tree to help institutions determine whether they need to report mortgage lending data, a chart 

that provides a summary of the reportable data, and a chart that describes when to report data 

as not applicable. The Bureau will monitor implementation progress and will be publishing 

additional regulatory implementation tools and resources on its website to support 

implementation needs.69 

4.1.5 HMDA data resubmission RFI 

In response to dialogue with industry and other stakeholders, the Bureau is considering 

modifications to its current resubmission guidelines. In comments on the Bureau’s proposed 

 

69 These resources are available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/regulatory-implementation/hmda/. 
49 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

changes to Regulation C, some stakeholders asked that the Bureau adjust its existing HMDA 

resubmission guidelines to reflect the expanded data the Bureau will collect under the HMDA 

Rule. 

Accordingly, on January 7, 2016, the Bureau published on its website a Request for Information 

(RFI) asking for public comment on the Bureau’s HMDA resubmission guidelines.70 Specifically, 

the Bureau requested feedback on the Bureau’s use of resubmission error thresholds; how they 

should be calculated; whether they should vary with the size of the HMDA submission or kind of 

data; and the consequences for exceeding a threshold, among other topics. Some examples of 

questions posed to the public include: 

 Should the Bureau continue to use error percentage thresholds to determine the need for 

data resubmission? If not, how else may the Bureau ensure data integrity and 

compliance with HMDA and Regulation C? 

 If the Bureau retains error percentage thresholds, should the thresholds be calculated 

differently than they are today? If so, how and why? 

 If the Bureau retains error percentage thresholds, should it continue to maintain 

separate error thresholds for the entire HMDA LAR sample and individual data fields 

within the LAR sample? If not, why? 

The RFI was published in the Federal Register on January 12, 2016.71 The 60-day comment 

period ended on March 14, 2016. As of this report’s publication date, the Bureau was reviewing 

the comments received in response to the RFI. 

 

70 See http://www.consumerfinance.gov/newsroom/cfpb-seeks-public-input-on-mortgage-lending-informationresubmission-guidelines/. 

71 81 Fed. Reg. 1,405 (Jan. 12, 2016), available at https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2016-01-12/pdf/2016-

00442.pdf. 
50 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

4.2 Small business data collection 

Section 1071 of Dodd-Frank requires financial institutions to compile, maintain, and submit to 

the Bureau certain data on credit applications for women-owned, minority-owned, and small 

businesses.72 Congress enacted Section 1071 for the purpose of facilitating enforcement of fair 

lending laws and identifying business and community development needs and opportunities for 

women-owned, minority-owned, and small businesses. In December 2015, the Bureau updated 

its Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan to reflect that rulemaking pursuant to Section 1071 is 

now in the pre-rule stage.73 The first stage of the Bureau’s work will be focused on outreach and 

research, after which the Bureau will begin developing proposed rules concerning the data to be 

collected and determining the appropriate procedures and privacy protections needed for 

information-gathering and public disclosure. 

The Bureau has begun to explore some of the issues involved in the rulemaking, including 

engaging numerous stakeholders about the statutory reporting requirements. The Bureau is also 

considering how best to work with other agencies to, in part, gain insight into existing small 

business data collection efforts and possible ways to cooperate in future efforts. In addition, 

current and future small business lending supervisory activity will help expand and enhance the 

Bureau’s knowledge in this area, including the credit process; existing data collection processes; 

and the nature, extent, and management of fair lending risk. 

4.3 Amicus Program 

The Bureau’s Amicus Program files amicus, or friend-of-the-court, briefs in court cases 

concerning the federal consumer financial protection laws that the Bureau is charged with 

implementing, including ECOA. These amicus briefs provide the courts with our views on 

significant consumer financial protection issues and help ensure that consumer financial 

 

72 Dodd-Frank Act § 1071 (codified at 15 U.S.C. § 1691c-2). 

73 80 Fed. Reg. 78,055, 78,058 (Dec. 15, 2015). 
51 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

protection statutes and regulations are correctly and consistently interpreted by the courts. 

On May 28, 2015, the Bureau with the Solicitor General of the United States filed an amicus 

brief in Hawkins v. Community Bank of Raymore addressing the question whether Regulation 

B permissibly interprets ECOA’s definition of “applicant” to encompass guarantors.74 Regulation 

B forbids creditors from requiring one spouse to guarantee the other spouse’s debt obligation 

solely because the couple is married. The regulation further defines the “applicants” protected 

from that discriminatory practice to include any such guarantor. The amicus brief argues that 

this interpretation of “applicant” is a permissible interpretation of ECOA that is entitled to 

deference and should be upheld.75 In an equally divided 4-4 decision that lacks precedential 

effect, the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.76

In 2015, the Bureau also began the process of working on an amicus brief in Alexander v. 

Ameripro Funding, Inc., appealing the United States District Court for the Southern District of 

Texas’s dismissal of an ECOA complaint alleging discrimination because all or part of the 

applicants’ income derives from a public assistance program. The District Court held that the 

allegations in the complaint failed to state a prima facie claim of discrimination and to allege 

direct evidence of discrimination because the allegations were “conclusory” and failed to allege 

hostility or animus.77 The Bureau filed its amicus brief on February 23, 2016, and argued that 

allegations that creditors refused to consider public assistance income state a claim under ECOA 

sufficient to survive a motion to dismiss. The brief also argued that hostility and animus are not 

 

74 Brief for the United States as Amicus Curiae Supporting Petitioners, Hawkins v. Community Bank of Raymore, 

135 S.Ct. 1492 (2015) (granting cert.) (No. 14-520), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/amicus/. 

75 Id. at 11. 

76 Hawkins v. Community Bank of Raymore, 577 U.S. (2016), 2016 WL 1092416. 

77 Alexander v. Ameripro Funding, Inc., 2015 WL 4545625 at *4 (S.D. Tex. 2015). 
52 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

elements of a discrimination claim under ECOA.78 

The Bureau’s Amicus Program is ongoing and we welcome suggestions of pending cases that 

might make good candidates for the program. 

 

78 Brief of Amicus Curiae Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in Support of Appellants and Reversal, Alexander, et 

al. v. Ameripro Funding, Inc., et al., No. 15-20710 (5th Cir. Feb. 23, 2016), available at 

http://www.consumerfinance.gov/amicus/. 
53 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

5. Research 

As part of the Bureau’s commitment to transparency and to being a data-driven agency, we 

continue to evaluate and share our fair lending methodologies and analytical approaches. In the 

Bureau’s 2015 Fair Lending Report to Congress,79 we discussed our evaluation of our proxy 

methodology, and responded to feedback from stakeholders. During the past year we have 

engaged in further dialogue around the Bureau’s proxy methodology. We have also described 

the Bureau’s approach to analyzing underwriting outcomes. 

5.1 Proxy methodology 

On September 17, 2014, the Bureau published a white paper, titled Using Publicly Available 

Information to Proxy for Unidentified Race and Ethnicity, that details the Bayesian Improved 

Surname Geocoding (BISG) methodology the Bureau uses to calculate the probability that an 

individual is of a specific race and ethnicity based on his or her last name and place of 

residence.80 

The analysis in the white paper showed that, compared to the distribution of self-reported race 

and ethnicity in a sample of mortgage applicants, the BISG proxy underestimated the 

percentage of non-Hispanic White mortgage applicants and overestimated the percentage of 

 

79 Available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201504_cfpb_fair_lending_report.pdf. 

80 Available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/reports/using-publicly-available-information-to-proxy-forunidentified-race-and-ethnicity/. 
54 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

minority applicants. The analysis suggested that this pattern of under- and over-estimation is 

likely more pronounced for mortgage applicants, who tend to be disproportionately more nonHispanic White than the U.S. adult population, and that in other settings, such as auto lending, 

the pattern may be less pronounced. 

Subsequent analysis of auto loan originations reported in the Consumer Expenditure Survey 

(CEX), a publicly-available survey of U.S. consumer expenditures conducted by the Bureau of 

Labor Statistics,81 and mortgage originations reported in the 2012 HMDA data supports this 

point. For instance, 12% of the U.S. adult population is African American, and in 2012 AfricanAmerican consumers received 10% of auto loan originations compared to 4% of mortgage loan 

originations. The general pattern of the percentage of auto loan originations being closer to the 

corresponding population percentage holds for non-Hispanic White, Asian and Pacific Islander, 

and Hispanic borrowers. This evidence suggests that for a nationally representative sample of 

consumers, the distribution of race and ethnicity for auto loan borrowers more closely 

approximates the distribution of race and ethnicity in the U.S. adult population than does the 

distribution of race and ethnicity for mortgage borrowers. 

TABLE 1: COMPARISON OF DISTRIBUTIONS OF RACE AND ETHNICITY 

Race/ 

Ethnicity 

Adult Population 

(Census 2010) 

Auto Loan 

Originations 

(CEX 2012) 

Mortgage Loan 

Originations 

(HMDA 2012) 

Non-Hispanic White 67% 73% 82% 

African American 12% 10% 4% 

Asian and Pacific 

Islander 5% 4% 7% 

Hispanic 14% 11% 7% 

The Bureau’s methodology is designed to arrive at the best estimate, based on publicly available 

 

81 See United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Expenditure Survey, public-use 

microdata available at http://www.bls.gov/cex/pumdhome.htm.
55 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

data, of the total number of harmed borrowers and to accurately identify the full scope of harm. 

The Bureau makes final determinations regarding discriminatory outcomes and their scope in 

dialogue with individual lenders, and carefully considers every argument lenders make about 

alternative ways to identify the number of harmed borrowers and the amount of harm. These 

alternative methods do not typically suggest an absence of discrimination or consumer harm, 

but rather a lower level than the Bureau’s original estimates. In some instances, as a result of 

dialogue with institutions, the Bureau has adopted changes to our analyses and reduced our 

estimates in response to specific alternatives offered by individual lenders with regard to their 

specific loan portfolios. In other instances, the Bureau has retained its original estimates, for 

example, where we have concluded that the proffered alternatives would underestimate the level 

of discrimination and harm without an adequate basis. 

As we stated in our white paper, the Bureau is committed to continuing our dialogue with other 

federal agencies, lenders, industry groups, consumer advocates, and researchers regarding the 

Bureau’s methodology, the importance of fair lending compliance, and the use of proxies when 

self-reported race and ethnicity is unavailable. We expect the methodology will continue to 

evolve as enhancements are identified that further increase accuracy and performance. 

5.2 Methodologies that can be used to 

understand underwriting disparities 

As noted above, the Fall 2015 edition of Supervisory Highlights detailed the Bureau’s 

supervisory work on ECOA targeted reviews that analyze an institution’s underwriting practices, 

including methodologies used to understand underwriting outcomes and identify potential 

disparities. 

In CFPB underwriting reviews, which typically evaluate potential disparities in denial rates, 

Bureau economists and analysts may rely on various methods to measure whether outcomes 

differ based on race, national origin, sex, or other prohibited bases. 

One traditional method involves odds ratios, which measure the ratio of the odds of two 

different events. In the context of an underwriting analysis, the ratio reflects the odds of a loan 

application denial between groups of borrowers. 
56 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

However, the Bureau may use other methods of analysis, including marginal effects, to gain a 

better understanding of the nature and relative magnitude of any underwriting disparities. In 

contrast to odds ratios, the marginal effect expresses the absolute change in denial probability 

associated with being a member of a prohibited basis group. For example, a marginal effect of 

0.10 in an underwriting analysis means the probability of denial for the test group is 10 

percentage points higher than the probability of denial for the control group. When the CFPB 

calculates marginal effects, it also considers a conditional marginal effect, which provides the 

increased chances of denial for a group holding all other factors constant, and thus controls for 

other, legitimate credit characteristics that may affect the probability of denial. 

An additional benefit of marginal effects is that they can be compared across groups and 

institutions, and to the institution’s overall approval and denial rates in the specific product 

reviewed. In this manner, the CFPB can contextualize the disparity to determine whether it 

warrants additional inquiry. In a number of instances, our review of marginal effects data has 

allowed us to decide that a particular disparity does not merit additional inquiry. 
57 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

6. Interagency coordination 

6.1 Interagency coordination and 

engagement 

The Office of Fair Lending regularly coordinates the CFPB’s fair lending efforts with those of 

other federal agencies and state regulators to promote consistent, efficient, and effective 

enforcement of federal fair lending laws.82 Through our interagency engagement, we work to 

address current and emerging fair lending risks. 

6.1.1 Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force’s NonDiscrimination Working Group 

The Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force was established in November 2009 by an 

Executive Order aimed at strengthening the efforts of the DOJ and federal, state, and local 

agencies “to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes and other violations relating 

to the current financial crisis and economic recovery efforts, recover the proceeds of such 

financial crimes and violations, and ensure just and effective punishment of those who 

perpetuate financial crimes and violations.”83 The Non-Discrimination Working Group focuses 

on and monitors financial fraud or other unfair practices and emerging trends in order to 

 

82 Dodd-Frank Act § 1013(c)(2)(B) (codified at 12 U.S.C. § 5493(c)(2)(B)). 

83 Exec. Order No. 13519, 74 Fed. Reg. 60,123 (Nov. 17, 2009). 
58 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

proactively address emerging discriminatory practices directed at people or neighborhoods 

based on race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, disability, or other bases prohibited 

by law. 

6.1.2 Interagency Task Force on Fair Lending 

The CFPB, along with the FTC, DOJ, HUD, FDIC, FRB, NCUA, OCC, and the Federal Housing 

Finance Agency, comprise the Interagency Task Force on Fair Lending. The Task Force meets 

regularly to discuss fair lending enforcement efforts, share current methods of conducting 

supervisory and enforcement fair lending activities, and coordinate fair lending policies. 

6.1.3 Interagency Working Group on Fair Lending 

Enforcement 

The CFPB belongs to a standing working group of Federal agencies – with the DOJ, HUD, and 

FTC – that meets regularly to discuss issues relating to fair lending enforcement. The agencies 

use these meetings to discuss fair lending developments and trends, methodologies for 

evaluating fair lending risks and violations, and coordination of fair lending enforcement efforts. 

In addition to these interagency working groups, we meet periodically and on an ad hoc basis 

with the prudential regulators to coordinate our fair lending work. 

6.1.4 FFIEC HMDA/Community Reinvestment Act Data 

Collection Subcommittee 

The CFPB takes part in the FFIEC HMDA/Community Reinvestment Act Data Collection 

Subcommittee, which is a subcommittee of the FFIEC Task Force on Consumer Compliance, as 

its work relates to the collection and processing of HMDA data jurisdiction. 

6.2 CFPB-HUD Memorandum of 

Understanding 

To increase efficiency and reduce industry burden where appropriate, the Bureau and HUD 

frequently collaborate and share information when there is overlapping authority. On 

September 2, 2015, the Bureau and HUD entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) 
59 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

delineating how each agency will use and properly share information to enhance fair lending 

compliance and interagency collaboration around institutions and issues over which the two 

agencies share jurisdiction. The MOU further extends the Bureau’s robust working relationship 

with HUD. In particular, HUD can now access the Bureau’s Government Portal, allowing HUD 

to view the Bureau’s consumer complaints. HUD, in turn, provides to the Bureau reports 

describing the fair lending complaints that it has received. Additionally, the agencies have 

agreed to coordinate joint fair lending investigations to minimize duplication of efforts; meet 

quarterly to discuss current fair lending investigations of entities within the jurisdiction of both 

Agencies; coordinate action(s) in a manner consistent and complementary to each agency’s 

actions, including determining whether multiple or joint actions are necessary and appropriate; 

notify each agency of relevant information under specified circumstances; and meet annually to 

assess the implementation of the MOU. 
60 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

7. Outreach: Promoting fair 

lending compliance and 

education 

Pursuant to Dodd-Frank,84 the Office of Fair Lending regularly engages in outreach with 

Members of Congress, industry, bar associations, consumer advocates, civil rights organizations, 

other government agencies, and other stakeholders to help educate and inform about fair 

lending. The Bureau is committed to communicating directly with all stakeholders on its 

policies, compliance expectations, and fair lending priorities. As part of this commitment to 

outreach and education in the area of fair lending, equal opportunity and ensuring fair access to 

credit, Bureau personnel have engaged in dialogue with stakeholders on issues including the use 

of public assistance income in underwriting, disparate impact, HMDA data collection and 

reporting, indirect auto financing, the use of proxy methodology, and the unique challenges 

facing limited English proficient (LEP) and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) 

consumers in accessing credit. Outreach is accomplished through issuance of Interagency 

Statements, Supervisory Highlights, Compliance Bulletins, and blog posts, speeches and 

presentations at conferences and trainings, interaction with Members of Congress and their 

staff, and participating in convenings to discuss fair lending and access to credit matters. 

 

84 Dodd-Frank Act § 1013(c)(2)(C) (codified at 12 U.S.C. § 5493(c)(2)(C)). 
61 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

7.1 Section 8 HCV Homeownership 

Compliance Bulletin 

When the Bureau becomes aware of compliance issues that may be widespread, it works to share 

information with industry stakeholders and consumers to address the concerns. On May 11, 

2015, the Bureau issued a compliance bulletin on the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) 

Homeownership Program.85 The Bulletin reminds creditors of their obligations under ECOA86 

and Regulation B87 to provide non-discriminatory access to credit for mortgage applicants using 

income from the Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program. In addition to publishing the 

Bulletin on its website, the Bureau published a blog post to raise consumer awareness of the 

Bulletin and the issues it addresses.88

The Bureau became aware of circumstances where institutions were excluding or refusing to 

consider income derived from the Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program during mortgage 

loan application and underwriting processes. Some institutions have restricted the use of 

Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program vouchers to only certain home mortgage loan products 

or delivery channels. Our reminder to mortgage lenders, in the form of the compliance bulletin, 

should help consumers who receive Section 8 HCV Homeownership Program vouchers receive 

fair and equal access to credit and will help industry comply with current law. 

 

85 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Program Bulletin 

2015-02 (May 11, 2015), available at http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201505_cfpb_bulletin-section-8-housingchoice-voucher-homeownership-program.pdf. 

86 15 U.S.C. § 1691 et seq.

87 12 C.F.R. pt. 1002 et seq.

88 Patrice Ficklin & Daniel Dodd-Ramirez, Income from the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership 

Program Shouldn’t Mean You Don’t Qualify for a Mortgage (May 11, 2015), available at 

http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/income-from-the-section-8-housing-choice-voucher-homeownershipprogram-shouldnt-mean-you-dont-qualify-for-a-mortgage/. 
62 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

7.2 HMDA Rule and RFI 

As explained more fully earlier in this report, the Bureau published its final rule implementing 

the Dodd-Frank Act’s amendments to HMDA and Regulation C in October 2015. Prior to 

publishing its final rule, the Bureau received and reviewed approximately 400 comments in 

response to its proposed rule. Additionally, the Bureau, in accordance with its obligation under 

the Dodd-Frank Act to consult with the appropriate prudential regulators and other Federal 

agencies prior to proposing a rule and during the comment process,89 proactively met with 

regulators throughout the rulemaking process to seek and consider their feedback. 

In conjunction with the HMDA Rule, the Bureau published a webpage dedicated to HMDA to 

consolidate resources for consumers, industry, academia, the media and other stakeholders. The 

HMDA webpage contains the new rule, materials for better understanding the rule and its 

requirements, a tool to explore HMDA data, helpful facts and figures about HMDA data, and 

more. The webpage can be accessed at www.consumerfinance.gov/hmda. 

In addition, on January 12, 2016, the Bureau published in the Federal Register a Request for 

Information (RFI) on possible modifications to the HMDA data resubmission guidelines.90 More 

information on both the HMDA Rule and the HMDA resubmission RFI may be found in Section 

4.1 of this Report. 

7.3 Blog posts 

The Bureau firmly believes that an informed consumer is the best defense against predatory 

lending practices. When issues arise that consumers need to know about, the Bureau uses many 

 

89 Dodd-Frank Act § 1022(b)(2)(B) (codified at 12 U.S.C. § 5512(b)(2)(B)). 

90 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Request for Information Regarding Home Mortgage Disclosure Act 

Resubmission Guidelines 2015-0058 (Jan. 12, 2016), available at 

http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201601_cfpb_request-for-information-regarding-home-mortgage-disclosureact-resubmission.pdf. 
63 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

tools to spread the word. The Bureau regularly uses its blog as a tool to communicate effectively 

to consumers on timely issues, emerging areas of concern, Bureau initiatives, and more. In 2015 

we published several blog posts related to fair lending, including announcement of the Hudson 

City redlining settlement, published in both English91 and Spanish92; updates on the Ally 

settlement, published in both English93 and Spanish94; information about income from the 

Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Program95; and, a summary of the 2014 

Annual Report.96 

The blog may be accessed any time at www.consumerfinance.gov/blog.

 

91 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Hudson City Savings Bank to Pay $27 million to Increase 

Access to Credit in Black and Hispanic Neighborhoods it Discriminated against (September 24, 2015), available at 

http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/hudson-city-savings-bank-to-pay-27-million-to-increase-access-to-creditin-black-and-hispanic-neighborhoods-it-discriminated-against/. 

92 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, El Banco de Ahorros Hudson City pagará $27 millones para 

aumentar el acceso al crédito en vecindarios mayormente afroamericanos e hispanos que discriminaba (October 21, 

2015), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/el-banco-de-ahorros-hudson-city-pagara-27-millonespara-aumentar-el-acceso-al-credito-en-vecindarios-mayormente-afroamericanos-e-hispanos-que-discriminaba/. 

93 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Ally Settlement Administrator Will Contact Eligible 

Borrowers Soon (June 15, 2015), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/ally-settlementadministrator-will-contact-eligible-borrowers-soon/. 

94 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Un administrador del acuerdo de Ally en breve estará en 

contacto con prestatarios elegibles (June 15, 2015), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/unadministrador-del-acuerdo-de-ally-en-breve-estara-en-contacto-con-prestatarios-elegibles/.

95 Patrice Ficklin & Daniel Dodd-Ramirez, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Income from the Section 8 

Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership Program Shouldn’t Mean You Don’t Qualify for a Mortgage (May 11, 

2015), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/income-from-the-section-8-housing-choice-voucherhomeownership-program-shouldnt-mean-you-dont-qualify-for-a-mortgage/. 

96 Patrice Ficklin, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, We’re Making Progress toward Ensuring Fair Access to 

Credit (April 28, 2015), available at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/were-making-progress-towardensuring-fair-access-to-credit/.
64 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

7.4 Fair Lending Webinar 

On October 15, 2015, along with federal partners from the FRB, the DOJ, the FDIC, the OCC, 

HUD, and the NCUA, the Office of Fair Lending staff participated in and presented at the 2015 

Federal Interagency Fair Lending Hot Topics webinar. The webinar covered several fair lending 

topics, including the use of data in evaluating fair lending risk, compliance management, 

maternity leave discrimination, post-origination risks, and auto lending settlements. The 

webinar was viewed by more than 6,000 registrants. 

7.5 Supervisory Highlights 

Supervisory Highlights publications anchor the Bureau’s efforts to communicate with 

supervised entities about supervisory findings. Because the Bureau’s supervisory process is 

confidential, Supervisory Highlights reports provide information to all market participants on 

broad supervisory and market trends that the Bureau observes. In 2015, Supervisory Highlights

covered many topical issues pertaining to fair lending, including an overview of Bureau 

underwriting reviews, discussion of mortgage origination policies that violate ECOA and 

Regulation B by failing to consider public assistance income, and settlement updates for recent 

enforcement actions that were originated in the supervisory process. 

More information about the topics discussed this year in Supervisory Highlights can be found 

in Section 2.1 of this Report. As with all Bureau resources, all editions of Supervisory Highlights

are available on www.consumerfinance.gov/reports. 
65 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

8. Interagency reporting 

Pursuant to ECOA, the CFPB is required to file a report to Congress describing the 

administration of its functions under ECOA, providing an assessment of the extent to which 

compliance with ECOA has been achieved, and giving a summary of public enforcement actions 

taken by other agencies with administrative enforcement responsibilities under ECOA.97 This 

section of this report provides the following information: 

 a description of the CFPB’s and other agencies’ ECOA enforcement efforts; and 

 an assessment of compliance with ECOA. 

In addition, the CFPB’s annual HMDA reporting requirement calls for the CFPB, in consultation 

with HUD, to report annually on the utility of HMDA’s requirement that covered lenders itemize 

certain mortgage loan data.98

8.1 Equal Credit Opportunity Act 

enforcement 

The enforcement efforts and compliance assessments made by all the agencies assigned 

enforcement authority under Section 704 of ECOA are discussed in this section. 

 

97 15 U.S.C. § 1691f. 

98 12 U.S.C. § 2807. 
66 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

8.1.1 Public enforcement actions 

In addition to the CFPB, the agencies charged with administrative enforcement of ECOA under 

Section 704 include: the FRB, the FDIC, the OCC, and the NCUA (collectively, the FFIEC 

agencies)99; the FTC, the Farm Credit Administration (FCA), the Department of Transportation 

(DOT), the SEC, the Small Business Administration (SBA), and the Grain Inspection, Packers 

and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) of the Department of Agriculture.100 In 2015, CFPB had 

four public enforcement actions for violations of ECOA, and the FDIC issued one public 

enforcement action for violations of ECOA and/or Regulation B. 

8.1.2 Violations cited during ECOA examinations 

Among institutions examined for compliance with ECOA and Regulation B, the FFIEC agencies 

reported that the most frequently cited violations were: 

TABLE 2: MOST FREQUENTLY CITED REGULATION B VIOLATIONS BY FFIEC AGENCIES: 2015 

FFIEC Agencies Reporting Regulation B Violations: 2015 

CFPB, FDIC, FRB, NCUA, OCC 

12 C.F.R. § 1002.4(a): Discrimination on a 

prohibited basis in a credit transaction. 

12 C.F.R. §§ 1002.5(b), (d): Improperly 

requesting information about an applicant’s race, 

color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status 

or source of income. 

12 C.F.R. §§ 1002.6(b)(1), (b)(2), (b)(5), (b)(9): 

 

99 The FFIEC is a “formal interagency body empowered to prescribe uniform principles, standards, and report forms 

for the federal examination of financial institutions” by the member agencies listed above and the State Liaison 

Committee “and to make recommendations to promote uniformity in the supervision of financial institutions.” 

Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, http://www.ffiec.gov (last visited Jan. 26, 2016).

100 15 U.S.C. § 1691c. 
67 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

FFIEC Agencies Reporting Regulation B Violations: 2015 

Improperly considering age, receipt of public 

assistance, certain other income, or another 

prohibited basis in a system of evaluating 

applicant creditworthiness. 

12 C.F.R. §§ 1002.7(a), (d)(1): Refusing to grant 

an individual account to a creditworthy applicant 

on a prohibit basis; improperly requiring the 

signature of an applicant’s spouse or other 

person. 

12 C.F.R. §§ 1002.9(a)(1), (a)(2), (b)(1), (b)(2), 

(c): Failure to timely notify an applicant when an 

application is denied; failure to provide sufficient 

information in an adverse action notification, 

including the specific reasons the application was 

denied; failure to timely and/or appropriately notify 

an applicant of either action taken or of 

incompleteness after receiving an application that 

is incomplete. 

12 C.F.R. §§ 1002.12(b)(1), (b)(3): Failure to 

preserve records on actions taken on an 

application or of incompleteness, and on adverse 

actions regarding existing accounts. 

12 C.F.R. §§ 1002.13(a) and (b): Failure to 

request and collect information about the race, 

ethnicity, sex, marital status, and age of 

applicants seeking certain types of mortgage 

loans. 

12 C.F.R. §14(a): Failure to provide an applicant 

with a copy of all appraisals and other written 

valuations developed in connection with an 

application for credit that is to be secured by a 

first lien on a dwelling, and/or failure to provide an 

applicant with a notice in writing of the applicant’s 

right to receive a copy of all written appraisals 

developed in connection with the application. 
68 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

TABLE 3: MOST FREQUENTLY CITED REGULATION B VIOLATIONS BY OTHER ECOA AGENCIES, 

2015 

Other ECOA Agencies Regulation B Violations: 2015 

 FCA 

12 C.F.R. § 1002.9: Failure to timely notify an 

applicant when an application is denied; failure to 

provide sufficient information in an adverse action 

notification, including the specific reasons the 

application was denied. 

12 C.F.R. § 1002.13: Failure to request and 

collect information about the race, ethnicity, sex, 

marital status, and age of applicants seeking 

certain types of mortgage loans. 

The GIPSA, the SEC, and the SBA reported that they received no complaints based on ECOA or 

Regulation B in 2015. In 2015, the DOT reported that it received a “small number of consumer 

inquiries or complaints concerning credit matters possibly covered by ECOA,” which it 

“processed informally.” The FTC is an enforcement agency and does not conduct compliance 

examinations. 

8.2 Referrals to the Department of Justice 

In 2015, the FFIEC agencies including the CFPB referred a total of 16 matters to the DOJ. The 

FDIC referred four matters to the DOJ. These matters alleged discriminatory treatment of 

persons in credit transactions due to protected characteristics, including race, national origin, 

marital status and receipt of public assistance income. The FRB referred four matters to the 

DOJ. These matters alleged discriminatory treatment of persons in credit transactions due to 

protected characteristics, including race, national origin, and marital status. The CFPB referred 

eight matters to the DOJ during 2015, finding discrimination in credit transactions on the 

following prohibited bases: race, color, national origin, age, receipt of public assistance income, 

sex, and marital status. 
69 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

8.3 Reporting on the Home Mortgage 

Disclosure Act 

The CFPB’s annual HMDA reporting requirement calls for the CFPB, in consultation with the 

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to report annually on the utility of 

HMDA’s requirement that covered lenders itemize in order to disclose the number and dollar 

amount of certain mortgage loans and applications, grouped according to various 

characteristics.101 The CFPB, in consultation with HUD, finds that itemization and tabulation of 

these data further the purposes of HMDA. For more information on the Bureau’s proposed 

amendments to HMDA’s implementing regulation, Regulation C, please see the Rulemaking 

section of this report (Section 4). 

 

101 See 12 U.S.C. § 2807. 
70 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

9. Conclusion 

In this, our fourth Fair Lending Report to Congress, we outline our work in furtherance of our 

Congressional mandate to ensure fair, equitable, and nondiscriminatory access to credit. Our 

multipronged approach uses every tool at our disposal – supervision, enforcement, rulemaking, 

outreach, research, data-driven prioritization, interagency coordination, and more. We are 

proud to present this report as we continue to fulfill our Congressional mandate as well as the 

Bureau’s mission to help consumer finance markets work by making rules more effective, by 

consistently and fairly enforcing these rules, and by empowering consumers to take more 

control over their economic lives. 
71 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

APPENDIX A: 

Defined terms 

TERM DEFINITION 

Bureau The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 

CFPB The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 

CMS Compliance Management System 

Dodd-Frank Act The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act 

DOJ The U.S. Department of Justice 

DOT The U.S. Department of Transportation 

ECOA The Equal Credit Opportunity Act 

FCA Farm Credit Administration 
72 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

FDIC The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 

Federal Reserve Board The U.S. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System 

FFIEC The U.S. Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council - the 

FFIEC member agencies are the Board of Governors of the Federal 

Reserve System (FRB), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 

(FDIC), the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), the Office 

of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the Consumer 

Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The State Liaison Committee 

was added to FFIEC in 2006 as a voting member. 

FRB The U.S. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System 

FTC The U.S. Federal Trade Commission 

GIPSA Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) of 

the U.S. Department of Agriculture 

HMDA The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act 

HUD The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 

LEP Limited English Proficiency 

LGBT Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender 
73 FAIR LENDING REPORT OF THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU, APRIL 2016 

NCUA The National Credit Union Administration 

OCC The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 

SBA Small Business Administration 

SEC U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission