I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 650
To amend the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974 to provide 
for homeowners to recover treble damages from mortgage escrow servicers 
for failures by such servicers to make timely payments from escrow 
accounts for homeowners insurance, taxes, or other charges, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 7, 2003
Mr. ANDREWS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To amend the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 
1974 to provide for homeowners to recover treble dam-
ages from mortgage escrow servicers for failures by such 
servicers to make timely payments from escrow accounts 
for homeowners insurance, taxes, or other charges, and 
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Homeowners’ Escrow 
Payments Assurance Act’’.
SEC. 2. TREBLE DAMAGES FOR FAILURE TO MAKE PAY-
MENTS FROM ESCROW ACCOUNT. 
Section 6(f) of the Real Estate Settlement Proce-
dures Act of 1974 (12 U.S.C. 2605(f)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking subparagraph 
(A) and inserting the following new subparagraph: 
‘‘(A)(i) except as provided in clause (ii), 
any actual damages to the borrower as a result 
of the failure; or 
‘‘(ii) in the case of an action for a failure 
to comply with the requirements of subsection 
(g), 3 times any such actual damages; and’’; 
and 
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking subparagraph 
(A) and inserting the following new subparagraph: 
‘‘(A)(i) except as provided in clause (ii), 
any actual damages to each of the borrowers in 
the class as a result of the failure; or 
‘‘(ii) in the case of an action for a failure 
to comply with the requirements of subsection 
(g), 3 times any such actual damages; and’’. 
SEC. 3. FINE FOR FAILURE TO MAKE PAYMENTS FROM ES-
CROW ACCOUNT RESULTING IN LAPSE IN IN-
SURANCE COVERAGE. 
Section 6 of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures 
Act of 1974 (12 U.S.C. 2605) is amended—
(1) by redesignating subsection (h) and (i) as 
subsections (i) and (j), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (g) the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(h) FINE FOR FAILURE TO MAKE PAYMENTS FROM 
ESCROW ACCOUNT RESULTING IN LAPSE IN INSURANCE 
COVERAGE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the servicer of a feder-
ally related mortgage loan collects payments from 
the borrower for deposit into an escrow account for 
the purpose of assuring payment of insurance pre-
miums and a failure by the servicer to make timely 
payments from the escrow account for such insur-
ance premiums results in a lapse in such insurance 
coverage for any period of time, the Secretary shall 
assess against the servicer a civil penalty of $1,000 
for each full or partial day of such lapse. 
‘‘(2) USE
OF
AMOUNTS.—The amounts col-
lected by the Secretary from fines under this section 
shall be available to the Secretary, to the extent pro-
vided in appropriation Acts, as follows: 
‘‘(A) 
DOWNPAYMENT
ASSISTANCE.—90 
percent of any such amounts shall be available 
only for the Secretary to carry out a program 
to provide assistance to low-income families (as
such term is defined in section 3(b) of the 
United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 
1437a(b)) for use as downpayments for the ac-
quisition of principal residences. 
‘‘(B) 
CONSUMER
ADVOCACY
ASSIST-
ANCE.—10 percent of any such amounts shall 
be available only for the Secretary to provide 
assistance for nonprofit organizations that en-
gage in legal advocacy activities relating to pro-
tection of consumer rights, which shall be se-
lected by the Secretary in consultation with the 
Attorney General.’’.
Æ