Following its multi-year rulemaking process, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today released its long-awaited rules regarding debt collection acts and practices under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Coming in at over 600 pages, the rules and associated commentary touch on many areas critical for the collection industry and consumers, with a particular focus on communication practices. The rules [...]
In August, just before the California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved CCPA regulations, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) withdrew several provisions from its draft regulations. The OAG noted at the time that it might resubmit these provisions after further review and possible revision. Yesterday, the OAG solicited comments on newly proposed regulations that would reinstate some of [...]
On September 25, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a series of bills, including AB 1864, which establishes the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) with the stated goal of “transform[ing] the agency into California’s version of the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau [CFPB].” The state joins others such as New York and New Jersey to adopt “mini-CFPB” agencies. In [...]
Participants in the lead generation industry know that compliance with the myriad legal frameworks that apply to their operations is not only necessary but also increasingly complex. One area where lead generators in the U.S. have traditionally operated relatively unencumbered—until recently—is with privacy laws. Until implementation of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) in 2020, no comprehensive federal or state [...]
By: Nick Whisler and Josh Stevens The past several weeks have brought a flurry of U.S. and international privacy developments. To help you stay on top of the everchanging landscape, here is a high-level summary of recent news and upcoming events. Federal Developments On September 17, a group of Republican senators announced a proposed federal privacy law called the SAFE DATA [...]
Do you want to know what the Federal Trade Commission thinks about marketing and advertising? Well, now is your chance. The FTC is hosting a free business workshop, “Green Lights and Red Flags: FTC Rules of the Road for Business” for those interested in learning about consumer protection principles and their application to today’s marketplace. This virtual workshop focuses on [...]
If your business involves medical billing or collections, we recommend you review a best practices document released this week. The Healthcare Financial Medical Association Accounts Receivable Resolution Task Force, in partnership with ACA International, has updated previously released 2014 recommendations for Best Practices for Resolution of Medical Accounts (“Report”). The Task Force was comprised of providers, consumer advocates, collection agencies, [...]
The California legislature has extended partial exemptions under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) for the collection and processing of personal information related to business contacts and employees/independent contractors until January 1, 2022. Originally slated to expire on January 1, 2021, these exemptions remove the vast majority of CCPA’s obligations with regard to personal information collected from business contacts in [...]
In June, the California attorney general submitted “final” CCPA regulations to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for approval. Last Friday, the state released the text of the Approved Regulations and the Final Statement of Reasons. Most changes equate to “clean-up” of the AG’s draft; however, the approved regulations include the following substantive changes: Removed all references to the “Do [...]
The European Court of Justice ruled today that the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield framework does not provide adequate safeguards for transfers of personal data from the European Union to the United States because of the lack of limits on access to the transferred data by intelligence officials and others. Under the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), data controllers and [...]
