State regulators

The complaint filed by New York, California and Illinois argues that the regulation, issued in response to the 2015 Madden decision, undermines state laws intended to protect consumers.

A budget item establishing a new agency to protect consumers from predatory lenders has been put on hold as state officials deal with the coronavirus response and other priorities. But it could be revived in legislative talks later this summer.

The new regulation is intended as a workaround for banks affected by the 2015 decision that created legal uncertainty for loans sold across state lines.

In another sign of state officials trying to outdo the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, governors in California and New York want greater authority to license and oversee the debt collection industry.

Former CFPB Director Richard Cordray and consumer advocates have designed a proposed state consumer agency that would subject more financial firms and fintechs to state oversight.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom plans to ask the legislature to revamp the current Department of Business Oversight and rename it the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, modeled after the federal CFPB.

With fintech firms appearing stuck in neutral in their efforts to seek bank charters from federal regulatory agencies, observers say state licensing options could be in vogue again in 2020.

A trade group is looking into why New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo felt foreclosure risks were too high to sign a bill that would have approved reverse mortgages for cooperative properties.

A proposal by a single utility threatens to upend California’s sweeping mandate requiring solar panels on almost every new home.

The San Francisco fintech company has agreed to pay a $110,000 fine for failing to comply with a 2017 state law that requires mortgage servicers to be licensed.