Joint federal regulatory agencies have released a final model privacy notice form that will make it easier for consumers to understand how financial institutions collect and share information about consumers. Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLB Act), institutions must notify consumers of their information-sharing practices and inform consumers of their right to opt out of certain sharing practices. The model form can be used by financial institutions to comply with these requirements.
See Model Privacy Notice for details and links to model notices.
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The Federal Reserve Board recently announced the annual indexing of the reserve requirement exemption amount and of the low reserve tranche for 2010. These amounts are used in the calculation of reserve requirements of depository institutions. The Board also announced the annual indexing of the nonexempt deposit cutoff level and the reduced reporting limit that will be used to determine deposit reporting panels effective 2010.
See sub-chapter Reserve Requirements for updated information.
The Federal Reserve Board announced final rules prohibiting institutions from charging fees for overdrafts on ATM and one-time debit card transactions.
The final rules will enable consumers to limit the costs of overdraft services by providing consumers a choice regarding their institution’s payment of overdrafts for ATM and one-time debit card transactions. Financial institutions will be required to provide a clear disclosure of the fees and terms associated with the institutions’ overdraft service.
Consumers may opt in or affirmatively consent, to the institution’s overdraft service for ATM and one-time debit card transactions, before overdraft fees may be assessed on the account. The rule also provides consumers an ongoing right to revoke consent.
For further information, including the mandatory compliance date, click here.
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) has announced the availability of data on mortgage lending transactions at 8,388 U.S. financial institutions covered by the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). Covered institutions include banks, savings associations, credit unions, and mortgage companies.
The HMDA data cover 2008 lending activity—applications for loans, loan originations, loan denials, and purchases of loans. The data also include disclosure statements for each financial institution, aggregate data for each metropolitan statistical area (MSA), nationwide summary statistics regarding lending patterns, and Loan Application Registers (LAR) for each financial institution (LARs modified for borrower privacy).
The FFIEC prepares and distributes this information on behalf of its member agencies (Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, National Credit Union Administration, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and Office of Thrift Supervision) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Financial institution disclosure statements, individual institutions’ LAR data, and MSA and nationwide aggregate reports are available at http://www.ffiec.gov/hmda. Refer to the HMDA data products at http://www.ffiec.gov/hmda/hmdaproducts.htm for the item descriptions and formats.
For further information see HMDA FAQs.
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The Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 waives required minimum distributions for 2009 from certain retirement plans.
In September 2009, the Internal Revenue Service provided guidance regarding this legislation. For example, the waiver of the RMD rules affects distributions for 2009 only. Also, for individuals who have taken their 2009 RMD, there are provisions that may allow the distributed amounts to be rolled over. For additional information and more details on this temporary waiver, see 2009 Required Minimum Distribution Waiver.
The guidance also provides amendment information and sample amendments for plan sponsors (see Pension Plan Required Amendments, RMD Waiver for 2009).
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The IRS has updated Form 1099-R and Form 5498 for tax year 2009. While no substantive changes were made to Form 1099-R, Form 5498 has been enlarged and reformatted to provide additional boxes for the collection of Required Minimum Distribution information.
These changes may be found at Form 1099-R Reporting Instructions and Form 5498 Reporting Instructions.
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The New York State legislature made sweeping changes to the Power of Attorney law, which went into effect September 1, 2009. The changes to the law require documents which are much more complex than the short form power of attorney under the old law. One major change, for example, is the use of a Statutory Major Gifts Rider for granting gifts of $500 or more. The new short form also affords principals increased protection by allowing the designation of co-agents as well as a person to monitor the agent. These changes and additional information on the new law can be found at New York Rules.
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