[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 240 (Monday, December 15, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74068-74069]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-29215]
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BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION
Fair Credit Reporting Act Disclosures
AGENCY: Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.
ACTION: Notice regarding charges for certain disclosures under the Fair
Credit Reporting Act.
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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) announces
that the ceiling on allowable charges under section 612(f) of the Fair
Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) will increase from $11.50 to $12.00,
effective for 2015. The Bureau is required to increase the $8.00 amount
referred to in section 612(f)(1)(A)(i) of the FCRA on January 1 of each
year, based proportionally on changes in the Consumer Price Index for
All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), with fractional changes rounded to the
nearest fifty cents. The CPI-U increased 47.66 percent between
September 1997, when the FCRA amendments took effect, and September
2014. This increase in the CPI-U, and the requirement that any increase
be rounded to the nearest fifty
[[Page 74069]]
cents, result in a maximum allowable charge of $12.00.
DATES: Effective January 1, 2015.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Wylie, Counsel, Office of
Regulations, at (202) 435-7700.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 612(f)(1)(A) of the Fair Credit
Reporting Act (FCRA) provides that a consumer reporting agency may
charge a consumer a reasonable amount for making a disclosure to the
consumer pursuant to section 609 of the FCRA.\1\ Section
612(f)(1)(A)(i) of the FCRA provides that, where a consumer reporting
agency is permitted to impose a reasonable charge on a consumer for
making a disclosure to the consumer pursuant to section 609 of the
FCRA, the charge shall not exceed $8.00 and shall be indicated to the
consumer before making the disclosure. Section 612(f)(2) of the FCRA
states that the Bureau shall increase the $8.00 maximum amount on
January 1 of each year, based proportionally on changes in the Consumer
Price Index, with fractional changes rounded to the nearest fifty
cents.
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\1\ This provision, originally section 612(a), was added to the
FCRA in September 1996 and became effective in September 1997. It
was relabeled section 612(f) by section 211(a)(1) of the Fair and
Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACT Act), Public Law 108-
159, which was signed into law on December 4, 2003.
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In 2011, the responsibility for performing this task was
transferred from the Federal Trade Commission to the Bureau pursuant to
the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of
2010.\2\ Like the Federal Trade Commission, the Bureau's calculations
are based on the CPI-U, which is the most general Consumer Price Index
and covers all urban consumers and all items.
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\2\ Public Law 111-203, title X, section 1088.
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Section 211(a)(2) of the FACT Act added a new section 612(a) to the
FCRA that gives consumers the right to request free disclosures once
every 12 months. The maximum allowable charge established by this
notice does not apply to requests made under that provision. The charge
does apply when a consumer who orders a file disclosure has already
received a free annual disclosure and does not otherwise qualify for an
additional free disclosure.
The Bureau is using the $8.00 amount set forth in section
612(f)(1)(A)(i) of the FCRA as the baseline for its calculation of the
increase in the ceiling on reasonable charges for certain disclosures
made under section 609 of the FCRA. Since the effective date of the
amended FCRA was September 30, 1997, the Bureau calculated the
proportional increase in the CPI-U from September 1997 to September
2014. The Bureau then determined what modification, if any, from the
original base of $8.00 should be made effective for 2015, given the
requirement that fractional changes be rounded to the nearest fifty
cents.
Between September 1997 and September 2014, the CPI-U increased by
47.66 percent--from an index value of 161.2 in September 1997 to a
value of 238.031 in September 2014. An increase of 47.66 percent in the
$8.00 base figure would lead to a new figure of $11.81. However,
because the statute directs that the resulting figure be rounded to the
nearest $0.50, the new maximum allowable charge is $12.00. The Bureau
therefore determines that the maximum allowable charge for the year
2015 will be $12.00, effective January 1, 2015.
Dated: December 4, 2014.
Richard Cordray,
Director, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.
[FR Doc. 2014-29215 Filed 12-12-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-AM-P