FCRA Bill May Expand Adverse-Action Notices

It appears that a final bill to extend and enhance the Fair Credit Reporting Act will expand the use of adverse-action notices, if this section of the bill can be improved to provide more certainty for lenders.House and Senate conferees are trying to reach an agreement on a final FCRA bill as Congress prepares to adjourn for the year by Thanksgiving. One of the outstanding issues involves a Senate-passed provision that requires adverse-action notices in cases where borrowers are not offered the lender's usual interest rate or terms because of their credit score. The Mortgage Bankers Association of America and other lender groups are concerned that the legislative language is too vague on what circumstances would trigger the notices and leaves too much discretion to the regulators in interpreting the new adverse-action requirement. "We are looking for more certainty in the triggers and more certainty in the class of individuals that would qualify for these disclosures," said MBA lobbyist Erick Gustafson.