Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 137 / Thursday, July 17, 2014 / Notices 41671 

Frequency: Biennially. 

Respondent’s Obligation: None. 

This information collection request 

may be viewed at reginfo.gov. Follow 

the instructions to view Department of 

Commerce collections currently under 

review by OMB. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent 

within 30 days of publication of this 

notice to OIRA_Submission@

omb.eop.gov or fax to (202) 395–5806. 

Dated: July 11, 2014. 

Gwellnar Banks, 

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2014–16789 Filed 7–16–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Proposed Information Collection; 

Comment Request; Pacific Islands 

Region Permit Family of Forms 

AGENCY: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Commerce, as part of its continuing 

effort to reduce paperwork and 

respondent burden, invites the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

take this opportunity to comment on 

proposed and/or continuing information 

collections, as required by the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted on or before September 15, 

2014. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments 

to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 

Paperwork Clearance Officer, 

Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 

14th and Constitution Avenue NW., 

Washington, DC 20230 (or via the 

Internet at JJessup@doc.gov). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information or 

copies of the information collection 

instrument and instructions should be 

directed to Walter Ikehara, (808) 725– 

5175, or Walter.Ikehara@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

This request is for extension of a 

current information collection. 

Regulations at 50 CFR Part 665, 

Subpart F, require that a vessel must be 

registered to a valid federal fishing 

permit if it is used to fish with longline 

gear for Pacific pelagic management unit 

species (PMUS), land or transship 

longline caught PMUS, or receive 

longline caught PMUS from a longline 

vessel, within the Exclusive Economic 

Zone (EEZ) of United States (U.S.) 

islands in the central and western 

Pacific, or to fish with troll and 

handline gear for PMUS within the EEZ 

around each of the Pacific Remote 

Island Areas (PRIA). 

Regulations at 50 CFR parts 665, 

Subparts D and E, require that the 

owner of a vessel used to fish for, land, 

or transship bottomfish management 

unit species (BMUS) using a large vessel 

(50 ft or longer) around Guam, or using 

a vessel within the EEZ around each of 

the PRIA, must register it to a valid 

federal fishing permit they hold. 

Regulations at 50 CFR Part 665, 

Subparts B, C, D and E, require that a 

vessel used to fish for precious corals 

within the EEZ of U.S. islands in the 

central and western Pacific, must be 

registered to a valid federal fishing 

permit for a specific precious coral 

permit area. 

This collection of information is 

needed for permit issuance, to identify 

actual or potential participants in the 

fishery, determine qualifications for 

permits, and to help measure the 

impacts of management controls on the 

participants in the fishery. The permit 

program is also an effective tool in the 

enforcement of fishery regulations and 

facilitates communication between the 

National Marine Fisheries Service 

(NMFS) and fishermen. 

II. Method of Collection 

Documents may be submitted via 

mail, fax, email or via Web-based 

application (National Permit System). 

III. Data 

OMB Control Number: 0648–0490. 

Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Regular submission 

(extension of a current information 

collection). 

Affected Public: Business or other for 

profit organizations; individuals or 

households. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

246. 

Estimated Time per Response: Hawaii 

longline limited entry permit transfer, 1 

hour; American Samoa longline limited 

entry permit renewal and additional 

permit application, 45 minutes; 

American Samoa longline permit 

transfer, 1 hour, 15 minutes; Main 

Hawaiian Islands longline prohibited 

area exemptions and permit appeals, 2 

hours; all other permits, 30 minutes. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden 

Hours: 145. 

Estimated Total Annual Cost to 

Public: $8,800 (including $8,155 in 

processing fees). 

IV. Request for Comments 

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether 

the proposed collection of information 

is necessary for the proper performance 

of the functions of the agency, including 

whether the information has practical 

utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency’s 

estimate of the burden (including hours 

and cost) of the proposed collection of 

information; (c) ways to enhance the 

quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information to be collected; and (d) 

ways to minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on 

respondents, including through the use 

of automated collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

Comments submitted in response to 

this notice will be summarized and/or 

included in the request for OMB 

approval of this information collection; 

they also will become a matter of public 

record. 

Dated: July 11, 2014. 

Gwellnar Banks, 

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2014–16788 Filed 7–16–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL 

PROTECTION 

Policy Guidance on Supervisory and 

Enforcement Considerations Relevant 

to Mortgage Brokers Transitioning to 

Mini-Correspondent Lenders 

AGENCY: Bureau of Consumer Financial 

Protection. 

ACTION: Policy Guidance. 

SUMMARY: The Bureau of Consumer 

Financial Protection (CFPB or Bureau) is 

issuing supervisory and enforcement 

guidance entitled ‘‘Policy Guidance on 

Supervisory and Enforcement 

Considerations Relevant to Mortgage 

Brokers Transitioning to MiniCorrespondent Lenders,’’ (Policy 

Guidance) which relates to the Bureau’s 

exercise of its authority to supervise and 

enforce compliance with RESPA and 

Regulation X and TILA and Regulation 

Z in certain transactions involving 

‘‘mini-correspondent lenders.’’ 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul 

S. Ceja, Senior Counsel and Special 

Advisor; Office of Regulations at (202) 

435–7700. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
41672 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 137 / Thursday, July 17, 2014 / Notices 

1 12 U.S.C. 2601 et seq., 12 CFR part 1024. 

2 15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq., 12 CFR part 1026. 

3Public Law 111–203, 124 Stat. 1376 (2010). 

4See 12 CFR part 1024, appendix A and appendix 

C. The Bureau’s TILA–RESPA Integrated Disclosure 

Rule (78 FR 79730 (Dec. 31, 2013)) effective August 

1, 2015, requires that the creditor compensation’s 

to the mortgage broker be on the Closing Disclosure 

(although not on the Loan Estimate). See 12 CFR 

1026.38(f)(1). 

5 12 CFR 1024.5(b)(7). Coverage under section 8 

of RESPA, implemented at 12 CFR 1024.14, 

prohibiting the payment of kickbacks for the referral 

of settlement services, and splits of charges other 

than for services performed, is also implicated by 

whether compensation is being paid in a secondary 

market transaction. For example, compensation for 

the sale of a mortgage loan is a secondary market 

transaction rather than a referral fee and is ‘‘beyond 

the scope of section 8.’’ See 12 CFR part 1024, 

appendix B, illustration 5. 

6 12 CFR 1026.32(b)(1)(ii). This section cross 

references the definition of ‘‘loan originator’’ in 12 

CFR 1026.36(a)(1). 12 CFR 1026.36(a)(2) defines 

‘‘mortgage broker’’ for purposes of § 1026.36, as 

‘‘any loan originator that is not an employee of the 

creditor.’’ See also 12 CFR 1026.32(a)(1)(ii) 

(threshold for points and fees for high-cost 

mortgages); 12 CFR 1026.43(e)(3) (limit on points 

and fees for qualified mortgages). See also 15 U.S.C. 

1602(bb)(1)(A) (definition of high-cost mortgage); 15 

U.S.C. 1602(bb)(4) (points and fees included for 

high-cost mortgages); 15 U.S.C. 1639c(b)(2)(A)(vii) 

(limit on points and fees for qualified mortgages); 

and 15 U.S.C. 1639c(b)(2)(C) (definition of points 

and fees for purposes of qualified mortgages). 

7 12 CFR 1026.32(b)(1)(i)(A) (excluding interest 

from points and fees); 12 CFR 1026.32(b)(1)(ii) 

(generally including compensation paid directly or 

I. Introduction 

The Bureau has become aware of 

increased interest among some mortgage 

brokers to restructure their business to 

become mini-correspondent lenders 

(mini-correspondents) in the possible 

belief that doing so will alter the 

applicability of important consumer 

protections that apply to transactions 

involving mortgage brokers. These 

protections include provisions in the 

Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act 

(RESPA) and Regulation X and the 

Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and 

Regulation Z, as amended by title XIV 

of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform 

and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 

(Dodd-Frank Act). The Bureau has 

implemented the title XIV amendments 

to RESPA and TILA through final rules 

amending Regulations X and Z, issued 

beginning in January 2013. These rules 

generally took effect in January 2014. 

The Bureau is issuing this Policy 

Guidance to identify for mortgage 

industry stakeholders, consumers, and 

the public generally questions the 

Bureau may consider in exercising its 

supervisory and enforcement authority 

under RESPA and TILA with respect to 

transactions involving minicorrespondent lenders. 

II. Description of Policy Guidance 

The Policy Guidance begins by 

providing background on the Bureau’s 

concern regarding the shift of some 

mortgage brokers to the minicorrespondent lender role, the RESPA 

and TILA consumer protections 

potentially affected by the transition of 

a mortgage broker to a minicorrespondent lender, and an overview 

of correspondent lending. The Policy 

Guidance follows this with a discussion 

of the regulatory framework under 

Regulation X and Regulation Z that 

determines the role and obligations of 

the parties in a mortgage transaction. 

The Policy Guidance then provides a 

non-exhaustive list of questions the 

Bureau may consider in the exercise of 

its supervisory and enforcement 

authority with respect to transactions 

involving mini-correspondent lenders. 

The Policy Guidance makes clear that 

no single question listed in the Policy 

Guidance is necessarily determinative of 

how the Bureau may exercise its 

supervisory and enforcement 

authorities. The Policy Guidance also 

makes clear that the facts and 

circumstances of the particular mortgage 

transaction being reviewed would be 

relevant to how the Bureau exercises 

these authorities. 

The Policy Guidance states that the 

Bureau will closely monitor the 

practices of mini-correspondents, 

including former mortgage brokers that 

have converted to this form, to ensure 

that the protections afforded to 

consumers under federal consumer 

financial law, including the Bureau’s 

implementing regulations, are not being 

evaded. Finally, the Policy Guidance 

also states that the Bureau will use all 

appropriate tools to assess whether 

supervisory, enforcement, or other 

actions are necessary. 

III. Policy Guidance 

The text of the Policy Guidance 

follows: 

Policy Guidance on Supervisory and 

Enforcement Considerations Relevant 

to Mortgage Brokers Transitioning to 

Mini-Correspondent Lenders 

The Bureau of Consumer Financial 

Protection (CFPB or Bureau) is issuing 

this ‘‘Policy Guidance on Supervisory 

and Enforcement Considerations 

Relevant to Mortgage Brokers 

Transitioning to Mini-Correspondent 

Lenders’’ (Policy Guidance) to identify 

the questions the Bureau may consider 

in exercising its supervisory and 

enforcement authority under the Real 

Estate Settlement Procedures Act 

(RESPA) and Regulation X and the 

Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and 

Regulation Z with respect to mortgage 

transactions involving minicorrespondent lenders (minicorrespondents), including transactions 

involving mortgage brokers that 

transition to mini-correspondent lender 

roles. 

Background 

The Bureau has become aware of 

increased mortgage industry interest in 

the transition of mortgage brokers from 

their traditional roles to minicorrespondent lender roles. The Bureau 

is concerned that some mortgage brokers 

may be shifting to the minicorrespondent model in the belief that, 

by identifying themselves as minicorrespondent lenders, they 

automatically alter the application of 

important consumer protections that 

apply to transactions involving 

mortgage brokers. These protections 

include provisions in RESPA and 

Regulation X 1 and TILA and Regulation 

Z,2 as amended by title XIV of the DoddFrank Wall Street Reform and Consumer 

Protection Act of 2010 (Dodd-Frank 

Act).3 The Bureau has implemented the 

title XIV amendments to RESPA and 

TILA through final rules amending 

Regulations X and Z, issued beginning 

in January 2013. These rules generally 

took effect in January 2014. 

Regulations X and Z apply certain 

requirements and prohibitions to 

compensation paid to a mortgage broker. 

These provisions include: 

• Disclosure of mortgage broker 

compensation. Regulation X requires 

that the lender’s compensation to the 

mortgage broker be disclosed on the 

Good-Faith Estimate and HUD–1 

Settlement Statement.4 By contrast, 

payments received by the lender from 

an investor as compensation for a ‘‘bona 

fide’’ transfer of the loan in the 

secondary market need not be 

disclosed; 5

• Inclusion of mortgage broker 

compensation in ‘‘points and fees.’’ 

Under Regulation Z, compensation paid 

to a mortgage broker by a consumer or 

creditor is included in points and fees 

for purposes of the points-and-fees cap 

for ‘‘qualified mortgages’’ and for the 

points-and-fees test for determining 

whether a mortgage is a ‘‘high-cost 

mortgage’’ under the Home Ownership 

and Equity Protection Act (HOEPA).6

Interest paid to a creditor is not 

included in points and fees; nor is any 

compensation a creditor (not otherwise 

defined as a ‘‘loan originator’’ for 

purposes of the loan originator 

compensation restrictions discussed 

further below) receives from a third 

party that purchases the loan included 

in points and fees; 7


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 137 / Thursday, July 17, 2014 / Notices 41673 

indirectly by a consumer or creditor to a loan 

originator). 

8See Loan Originator Compensation 

Requirements Under the Truth in Lending Act 

(Regulation Z) 78 FR 11279 (Feb. 15, 2013); see also 

Amendments to 2013 Mortgage Rules Under the 

Equal Credit Opportunity Act (Regulation B), Real 

Estate Settlement Procedures Act (Regulation X), 

and the Truth in Lending Act (Regulation Z), 78 FR 

60382 (Oct.1, 2013). 

9 In Regulation Z these prohibitions apply to 

compensation paid to ‘‘loan originators’’ (including 

‘‘loan originator organizations’’). See 12 CFR 

1026.36(a)(1)(i), (iii). However, for clarity this 

Policy Guidance refers to mortgage brokers which, 

as noted, are included in the definition of ‘‘loan 

originator.’’ See 12 CFR 1026.36(a)(2) and footnote 

6. 

10 12 CFR 1026.36(d)(2). 

11 12 CFR 1026.36(d)(1). 

12 12 CFR 1026.36(e). 

13 12 CFR 1024.2. 

14 Id. 

15 Id. A lender is otherwise generally defined as 

the secured creditor named on the debt obligation. 

16 12 CFR 1024.5(b)(7). 

• Restrictions on mortgage broker 

compensation. TILA and Regulation Z8

prohibit certain compensation 

arrangements between creditors and 

loan originators, including mortgage 

brokers.9 Mortgage brokers may not 

receive compensation from both the 

consumer and the creditor or any 

another person; 10 and mortgage brokers 

may not receive compensation based on 

loan terms.11 These restrictions do not 

apply to compensation by a third party, 

such as an investor, to a creditor that is 

not also defined as a loan originator for 

purposes of these compensation 

restrictions; and 

• Prohibition on steering to increase 

mortgage broker compensation. TILA 

and Regulation Z prohibit loan 

originators, including mortgage brokers, 

from ‘‘steering’’ consumers to 

transactions not in their interest, to 

increase the mortgage broker’s 

compensation.12

A correspondent lender, as generally 

understood in the mortgage industry, 

performs the activities necessary to 

originate a mortgage loan, i.e., it takes 

on the tasks usually performed by the 

originating lender. The correspondent 

lender takes and processes applications, 

provides required disclosures, and 

often, although not always, underwrites 

loans and makes the final credit 

approval decision. The correspondent 

lender closes loans in its name, funds 

them (often through a warehouse line of 

credit), and sells them to an investor by 

prior agreement. A full correspondent 

lender may have such agreements with 

multiple investors. 

The Bureau understands that some 

entities may transition from being a 

mortgage broker to being a 

correspondent lender and, in so doing, 

may begin as a small correspondent 

with agreements with only a few 

investors. Entities attempting to move to 

the role of a correspondent lender may 

start by obtaining a warehouse line of 

credit, typically from a third-party 

‘‘warehouse bank.’’ The warehouse line 

of credit will provide the funding for the 

mortgage loans the entities originate and 

sell to a third-party investor. Over time, 

the number of third-party investors with 

which the correspondent lender has 

agreements may grow. 

Since the Bureau issued the title XIV 

rules, it understands that some mortgage 

brokers may be setting up arrangements 

with wholesale lenders in which they 

purport to act as mini-correspondent 

lenders. Under such arrangements, the 

mortgage broker may in form appear to 

be the lender or creditor in each 

transaction by engaging in activities 

such as closing the loan in its own 

name, funding the loan from what is 

designated as a warehouse line of credit, 

and receiving compensation through 

what may nominally take the form of a 

premium for the sale of the loan to an 

investor. 

However, in substance, these 

mortgage brokers may not have 

transitioned to the mini-correspondent 

lender role and may be continuing to 

serve effectively as mortgage brokers. 

That is, these mortgage brokers may 

continue to facilitate brokered loan 

transactions between borrowers and 

wholesale lenders (i.e., entities which 

typically provide the funding for loans 

in transactions involving mortgage 

brokers). For example, the mortgage 

broker may enter into an arrangement 

with a lender designated as an 

‘‘investor,’’ but that investor may 

function as the mortgage broker’s 

wholesale lender, and not as a 

purchaser of loans in the secondary 

market. Such an ‘‘investor’’ may 

continue to perform the same 

origination activities it would perform 

as a traditional wholesale lender for the 

loans that it now ‘‘buys’’ from the 

mortgage broker. As well as performing 

these functions and agreeing to 

purchase the loans from the mortgage 

broker designated as a ‘‘minicorrespondent, the ‘‘investor’’ may also 

provide the warehouse line of credit 

that the ‘‘mini-correspondent’’ uses to 

fund its loans. 

As discussed below, the requirements 

and restrictions that RESPA and TILA 

and their implementing regulations 

impose on compensation paid to 

mortgage brokers do not depend on the 

labels that parties use in their 

transactions. Rather, under Regulation 

X, whether compensation paid by the 

‘‘investor’’ to the ‘‘lender’’ must be 

disclosed depends on determinations 

such as whether that compensation is 

part of a secondary market transaction, 

as opposed to a ‘‘table-funded’’ 

transaction. Likewise, under Regulation 

Z, whether compensation paid by the 

‘‘investor’’ to the ‘‘creditor’’ must be 

included in the points-and-fees 

calculation and whether the ‘‘creditor’’ 

is subject to the compensation 

restrictions as a mortgage broker 

depends on determinations such as 

whether the ‘‘creditor’’ finances the 

transaction out of its own resources as 

opposed to relying on table-funding by 

the ‘‘investor.’’ 

In exercising its supervisory and 

enforcement authority, the Bureau may 

consider factors that evidence the true 

nature of the mortgage transaction, i.e., 

whether the parties are engaging in good 

faith in a secondary market transaction 

between a lender and a third-party 

investor or, in fact, a typical primary 

market transaction involving a mortgage 

broker and a wholesale lender. 

Discussion 

RESPA and TILA Regulatory 

Framework: The mortgage broker 

compensation requirements imposed by 

RESPA and Regulation X do not apply 

to exempt bona fide secondary-market 

transactions, but those requirements do 

apply to table-funded transactions. 

Whether a transaction is deemed to be 

a bona fide secondary market sale of a 

loan turns on the ‘‘real source of 

funding’’ and the ‘‘real interest of the 

funding lender.’’ 

Regulation X defines a mortgage 

broker as a person, other than an 

employee of a lender, who renders 

origination services and serves as an 

intermediary between a borrower and 

lender in a federally-related mortgage 

loan transaction, including such a 

person that closes the loan in its own 

name in a ‘‘table-funded transaction.’’ 13

‘‘Table-funding’’ occurs when the loan 

is funded by a contemporaneous 

advance of loan funds and an 

assignment of the loan to the person 

advancing the funds.14 In table-funding, 

the third party who advances the loan 

funds and takes initial assignment of the 

loan at or after settlement is the lender 

for purposes of Regulation X, and the 

entity which acts as the intermediary in 

bringing that lender and the borrower 

together is the mortgage broker (even 

though that entity closes the loan in its 

own name).15 However, a ‘‘bona fide 

transfer of a loan obligation in the 

secondary-market’’ is not covered by 

RESPA under Regulation X (with 

exceptions not relevant here).16

Regulation X explains that the Bureau 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
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17 Id. See also 12 CFR part 1024, appendix B, 

illustration 5. 

18 Id. 

19 12 CFR 1026.2(a)(17). 

20 12 CFR 1026.36(a)(1)(i). 

21Comment 36(a)–1.i.C. 

22Comment 36(a)–1.ii. 

will consider the ‘‘real source of 

funding’’ for the loan and the ‘‘real 

interest of the funding lender’’ in 

determining what constitutes a bona 

fide transfer.17 Under Regulation X, a 

table-funded transaction is not a 

secondary-market transaction.18

Similarly, the TILA and Regulation Z 

loan originator compensation 

requirements discussed above cover 

compensation paid to mortgage brokers 

in ‘‘table-funded’’ transactions. Under 

Regulation Z, a creditor is defined in 

relevant part as a person who regularly 

extends credit and to whom the 

obligation is initially payable on the 

face of the note.19 For purposes of the 

loan originator compensation 

requirements discussed above, however, 

a ‘‘loan originator’’ is defined to include 

such a creditor if it engages in loan 

origination activity and ‘‘does not 

finance the transaction at 

consummation out of the creditor’s own 

resources, including by drawing on a 

bona fide warehouse line of credit.’’ 20

In other words, the term loan originator, 

for purposes of the loan originator 

requirements discussed above, includes 

any creditor that otherwise satisfies the 

definition of loan originator and makes 

use of ‘‘table funding’’ by a third 

party.21 A table-funded transaction is 

consummated with the debt obligation 

initially payable by its terms to one 

person, but another person provides the 

funds for the transaction at 

consummation and receives an 

immediate assignment of the note.22

By defining mortgage brokers to 

include entities which close loans in 

their own names in table-funded 

transactions—and by excluding from 

RESPA only bona fide secondary-market 

transactions—Regulation X recognizes 

that it is possible to structure 

transactions that take the form of the 

sale of a loan to an investor but where, 

in substance, the purchaser functions as 

the lender and the entity whose name is 

on the note is a mortgage broker. 

Regulation Z recognizes this as well by 

defining the term loan originator to 

include creditors in table-funded 

transactions and differentiating between 

such transactions and those in which a 

creditor draws upon a bona fide 

warehouse line of credit. 

Questions the Bureau May Consider 

in Exercising Its Supervisory and 

Enforcement Authority Under RESPA 

and TILA in Transactions Involving 

Mini-Correspondents: As discussed 

above, the Bureau understands that 

some mortgage brokers have 

successfully transitioned to 

correspondent lenders (small or large) 

that do not act as mortgage brokers in 

covered mortgage transactions. Such 

correspondent lenders often perform a 

majority of the principal origination 

activities with the funds provided by a 

bona fide warehouse line of credit. The 

correspondent lenders then sell the 

loans in secondary market transactions 

to third-party investors. The Bureau also 

understands that other mortgage brokers 

may be seeking to adopt the form of a 

mini-correspondent lender out of a 

belief that doing so avoids application 

of various provisions of Regulations X 

and Z. 

In exercising its supervisory and 

enforcement authority under RESPA 

and TILA in transactions involving 

mini-correspondents, the Bureau asks 

various questions relevant to 

understanding the true nature of the 

mortgage transaction. 

Among the questions the Bureau asks 

are the following: 

• Beyond the mortgage transaction at 

issue, does the mini-correspondent still 

act as a mortgage broker in some 

transactions, either brokering to the 

same wholesale lender that supplies the 

warehouse line of credit or otherwise? 

Æ If so, what distinguishes the minicorrespondent’s ‘‘mortgage broker’’ 

transactions from its ‘‘lender’’ 

transactions? 

• How many ‘‘investors’’ does the 

mini-correspondent have available to it 

to purchase loans? 

• Is the mini-correspondent using a 

bona fide warehouse line of credit as the 

source to fund the loans that it 

originates? 

Æ Is the warehouse line of credit 

provided by a third-party warehouse 

bank? 

Æ How thorough was the process for 

the mini-correspondent to get approved 

for the warehouse line of credit? 

Æ Does the mini-correspondent have 

more than one warehouse line of credit? 

Æ Is the warehouse bank providing 

the line of credit one of, or affiliated 

with any of, the mini-correspondent’s 

investors that purchase loans from the 

mini-correspondent? 

Æ If the warehouse line of credit is 

provided by an investor to whom the 

mini-correspondent will ‘‘sell’’ loans to, 

is the warehouse line a ‘‘captive’’ line 

(i.e., the mini-correspondent is required 

to sell the loans to the investor 

providing the warehouse line (or 

affiliates of the investor))? 

Æ What percentage of the minicorrespondent’s total monthly 

originated volume is sold by the minicorrespondent to the entity providing 

the warehouse line of credit to the minicorrespondent, or to an investor related 

to the entity providing the warehouse 

line of credit? 

Æ Does the mini-correspondent’s total 

warehouse line of credit capacity bear a 

reasonable relationship, consistent with 

correspondent lenders generally, to its 

size (i.e., its assets or net worth)? 

• What changes has the minicorrespondent made to staff, 

procedures, and infrastructure to 

support the transition from mortgage 

broker to mini-correspondent? 

• What training or guidance has the 

mini-correspondent received to 

understand the additional compliance 

risk associated with being the lender or 

creditor on a residential mortgage 

transaction? 

• Which entity (mini-correspondent, 

warehouse lender, investor) is 

performing the majority of the principal 

mortgage origination activities? 

Æ Which entity underwrites the 

mortgage loan before consummation and 

otherwise makes the final credit 

decision on the loan? 

Æ What percentage of the principal 

mortgage origination activities, such as 

the taking of loan applications, loan 

processing, and pre-consummation 

underwriting, is being performed by the 

mini-correspondent, or an independent 

agent of the mini-correspondent? 

Æ If the majority of the principal 

mortgage origination activities are being 

performed by the investor, is there a 

plan in place to transition these 

activities to the mini-correspondent? 

D What conditions must be met to 

make this transition (e.g., number of 

loans, time)? 

This document is intended to provide 

guidance to mortgage industry 

stakeholders, consumers, and the public 

related to the considerations that the 

Bureau may employ in the exercise of 

its supervisory and enforcement 

authority with respect to mortgage 

transactions involving minicorrespondents, including mortgage 

brokers transitioning into becoming 

mini-correspondents. The above list of 

questions is not an exhaustive list of the 

Bureau’s considerations relevant to the 

exercise of its supervisory and 

enforcement authorities. In addition, no 

single question listed above is 

necessarily determinative of how the 

Bureau may exercise its supervisory and 

enforcement authorities. Furthermore 

the facts and circumstances of the 

particular mortgage transaction being 


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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 137 / Thursday, July 17, 2014 / Notices 41675 

reviewed are relevant to the exercise of 

these authorities. 

Conclusion 

The Bureau will closely monitor the 

practices of mini-correspondents, 

including former mortgage brokers that 

have converted to this form, to ensure 

that the protections afforded to 

consumers under federal consumer 

financial law, including the Bureau’s 

implementing regulations, are not being 

evaded. In doing so, the Bureau will use 

all appropriate tools to assess whether 

supervisory, enforcement or other 

actions are necessary. 

IV. Regulatory Requirements 

This Policy Guidance is a non-binding 

policy guidance articulating 

considerations relevant to the Bureau’s 

exercise of its supervisory and 

enforcement authority under Regulation 

X and RESPA, and Regulation Z and 

TILA. It is therefore exempt from the 

notice and comment rulemaking 

requirements under the Administrative 

Procedure Act pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 

553(b). 

Because no notice of proposed 

rulemaking is required, the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act does not require an 

initial or final regulatory flexibility 

analysis. 5 U.S.C. 603(a), 604(a). 

The Bureau has determined that this 

Policy Guidance does not impose any 

new or revise any existing 

recordkeeping, reporting, or disclosure 

requirements on covered entities or 

members of the public that would be 

collections of information requiring 

OMB approval under the Paperwork 

Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq. 

Dated: July 9, 2014. 

Richard Cordray, 

Director, Bureau of Consumer Financial 

Protection. 

[FR Doc. 2014–16779 Filed 7–16–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4810–AM–P 

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY 

COMMISSION 

Public Availability of Consumer 

Product Safety Commission FY 2013 

Service Contract Inventory 

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety 

Commission (CPSC or we), in 

accordance with section 743(c) of 

Division C of the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act, 2010 (Pub. L. 111– 

117, 123 Stat. 3034, 3216), is 

announcing the availability of CPSC’s 

service contract inventory for fiscal year 

(FY) 2013. This inventory provides 

information on service contract actions 

that exceeded $25,000 that CPSC made 

in FY 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Eddie Ahmad, Procurement Analyst, 

Division of Procurement Services, 

Division of Procurement Services, U.S. 

Consumer Product Safety Commission, 

4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 

20814. Telephone: 301–504–7884; 

email: aahmad@cpsc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

December 16, 2009, the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act, 2010 (Consolidated 

Appropriations Act), Public Law 111– 

117, became law. Section 743(a) of the 

Consolidated Appropriations Act, titled, 

‘‘Service Contract Inventory 

Requirement,’’ requires agencies to 

submit to the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB), an annual inventory of 

service contracts awarded or extended 

through the exercise of an option on or 

after April 1, 2010, and describes the 

contents of the inventory. The contents 

of the inventory must include: 

(A) A description of the services purchased 

by the executive agency and the role the 

services played in achieving agency 

objectives, regardless of whether such a 

purchase was made through a contract or task 

order; 

(B) The organizational component of the 

executive agency administering the contract, 

and the organizational component of the 

agency whose requirements are being met 

through contractor performance of the 

service; 

(C) The total dollar amount obligated for 

services under the contract and the funding 

source for the contract; 

(D) The total dollar amount invoiced for 

services under the contract; 

(E) The contract type and date of award; 

(F) The name of the contractor and place 

of performance; 

(G) The number and work location of 

contractor and subcontractor employees, 

expressed as full-time equivalents for direct 

labor, compensated under the contract; 

(H) Whether the contract is a personal 

services contract; and 

(I) Whether the contract was awarded on a 

noncompetitive basis, regardless of date of 

award. 

Section 743(a)(3)(A) through (I) of the 

Consolidated Appropriations Act. 

Section 743(c) of the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act requires agencies to 

‘‘publish in the Federal Register a 

notice that the inventory is available to 

the public.’’ 

Consequently, through this notice, we 

are announcing that the CPSC’s service 

contract inventory for FY 2013 is 

available to the public. The inventory 

provides information on service contract 

actions over $25,000 that CPSC made in 

FY 2013. The information is organized 

by function to show how contracted 

resources are distributed throughout the 

CPSC. We developed the inventory in 

accordance with guidance issued on 

December 19, 2011, by the OMB. (The 

OMB guidance is available at: http://

www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/

omb/procurement/memo/servicecontract-inventories-guidance11052010.pdf.) The CPSC’s Division of 

Procurement Services has posted its 

inventory, and a summary of the 

inventory can be found at our homepage 

at the following link: http://

www.cpsc.gov/About-CPSC/AgencyReports/Service-Contract-Inventory/. 

Dated: July 10, 2014. 

Todd A. Stevenson, 

Secretary, Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

[FR Doc. 2014–16793 Filed 7–16–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6355–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Office of the Secretary 

[Docket ID: DoD–2012–OS–0152] 

Proposed Collection; Comment 

Request 

AGENCY: Defense Logistics Agency, DoD. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with Section 

3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995, the Defense 

Logistics Agency announces a proposed 

public information collection and seeks 

public comment on the provisions 

thereof. Comments are invited on: (a) 

Whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

agency, including whether the 

information shall have practical utility; 

(b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate 

of the burden of the proposed 

information collection; (c) ways to 

enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 

of the information to be collected; and 

(d) ways to minimize the burden of the 

information collection on respondents, 

including through the use of automated 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology. 

DATES: Consideration will be given to all 

comments received by September 15, 

2014. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by docket number and title, 

by any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES