What's New? Update to OSHA Vaccine Mandate

Employers now have until January 10, 2022 to comply with all ETS requirements except for the testing requirements, which become effective February 9, 2022. Details are found here in The Gold Book.

What's New? Mortgage Servicing Technical Assistance Videos

The FDIC has updated the technical assistance videos on the mortgage servicing rules. The information in the five videos is intended as a high-level overview to help FDIC-supervised institutions understand and comply with the mortgage servicing rules. Details may be found here in The Gold Book.

What's New? EFT FAQs

The CFPB has updated its FAQs on the Electronic Funds Transfer Act. Find out more here in The Gold Book and more in the Electronic Funds Transfer Act sub-chapter. 

NYC Job Posting Salary Requirements

The New York City Council passed Intro.1208B-2018, which would require the disclosure by prospective employers of minimum and maximum salaries in job postings for open positions located in New York City. The salary disclosure provisions will take effect 120 days after the bill becomes law, with rules expected to be promulgated by the New York City Commission on Human Rights once enacted. 

What's New? EEOC Covid-19 FAQs

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued guidance in the form of FAQs regarding the circumstances under which COVID-19 may be considered a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Read more under Federal Decisions & Opinions, Covid-19 Relief in The Gold Book.

What's New? The NY HERO Act

The New York State Department of Health has extended, until January 15, 2022, its designation of Covid-19 as a highly contagious communicable disease, thereby continuing the requirement that employers keep their health and safety plans activated pursuant to the NY Hero Act until at least that date. Visit The Gold Book to read more about the NY Hero Act and other NYS Covid-19 Relief topics.

NYS Electronic Notary

The NYBA is urging the Governor to approve a bill which would permanently authorize the use of electronic notarization in New York State.  Electronic notarization was previously authorized by the State on a temporary, emergency basis to help address challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.  Expressing its strong support for the bill, NYBA noted that throughout the pandemic its member banks had successfully demonstrated the value of electronic notarization as a means to help ensure that vital financial services can be delivered safely and effectively.  The bill must either be signed or vetoed by the Governor no later than December 22, 2021. Read more here in The Gold Book.

What's New? OCC June 2020 CRA Rule Rescinded

On December 14, 2021, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a final rule to rescind the June 2020 Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) rule and replace it with a rule based on the rules adopted jointly by the federal banking agencies in 1995, as amended. The final rule aligns the OCC's CRA rules with the current Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation rules and thereby facilitates the ongoing interagency work to modernize the CRA regulatory framework and create consistency for all insured depository institutions. To read more on this topic, visit the the CRA chapter of The Gold Book or the OCC Bulletin here.

Employer W2 Reporting Under FFCRA

Employers must report the amount of qualified sick leave wages and qualified family leave wages paid in 2021 to employees under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, as amended by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, on either 2021 Forms W-2, box 14, or on a separate statement. This provides employees who are also self-employed with amounts they may need to figure their qualified sick leave equivalent or qualified family leave equivalent credits. See Notice 2021-53 for more information on how to report these amounts. Read more about Reporting Compliance in The Gold Book.

What's New? OSHA ETS on Hold

Following the filing of appeals in various circuit courts, in a statement posted to its website OSHA said that it “has suspended activities related to the implementation and enforcement of the Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) pending future developments in the litigation. Read about it in The Gold Book. 

New Retail Lending Handbook

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued version 2.0 of the “Retail Lending” booklet of the Comptroller’s Handbook. This booklet discusses risks associated with retail lending and provides a framework for examiners’ evaluations of risk management activities. Visit the OCC to view and download the booklet here.

What's New? TIL Exam Procedures and New QM Categories

The Task Force on Consumer Compliance of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) has adopted revised interagency examination procedures for the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), implemented by Regulation Z. The revised interagency procedures reflect amendments to Regulation Z to promote consistency in the examination process and communication of supervisory expectations and to reflect the following changes to Regulation Z:

• The new general qualified mortgage (QM) definition.
• A new category of QMs called seasoned QMs.
• A delay in the mandatory compliance date for the new general QM definition until October 1, 2022.

Read more about the Ability-to-Repay/Qualified Mortgage Rule in The Regulation Z section of The Gold Book.

What's New? Mortgage Servicing Rules / COVID-19 Relief Expires

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union Administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and state financial regulators (collectively, the agencies) have issued a statement communicating to mortgage servicers that the temporary supervisory and enforcement flexibility provided in the April 2020 joint statement no longer applies and the agencies will apply their respective authorities to address any noncompliance or violations of the Regulation X mortgage servicing rules that occur after the date of this statement. Read more in The Gold Book.

What's New? OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued an emergency temporary standard (ETS) to minimize the risk of COVID-19 transmission in the workplace. The ETS establishes binding requirements to protect unvaccinated employees of large employers (100 or more employees) from the risk of contracting COVID-19 in the workplace. Read more about this and other Workplace Considerations relating to COVID-19 in The Gold Book.

New Series W-8 Forms Issued

The Internal Revenue Service has released updated and revised Forms W-8 and instructions. The Form W-8BEN and W-8BEN-E are final effective October 2021 (Form W-8IMY remains in draft). Click here to see more information on the IRS website.  

What's New? Workplace Considerations During the Time of COVID

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recognizes that “long COVID” may be a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act in certain circumstances. 

Employers and employees should follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well as state/local public health authorities on how best to slow the spread of this disease and protect workers, customers, clients, and the general public. The ADA and the Rehabilitation Act do not interfere with employers following advice from the CDC and other public health authorities on appropriate steps to take relating to the workplace.

The Gold Book addresses many concerns on this topic including disability related inquiries, religious accommodations, vaccinations, and more. Visit the COVID-19 Relief section of the Decisions and Opinions chapter.

What's New? Pandemic Preparedness in the Workplace

The Americans with Disabilities Act published a technical assistance document in 2009, during the spread of H1N1 virus, and was re-issued on March 19, 2020 and revised thereafter, to incorporate updates regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. It identifies established ADA principles that are relevant to questions frequently asked about workplace pandemic planning. Details are found in the Human Resources chapter of The Gold Book under American with Disabilities Act. 

What's New? 2021 Dollar Thresholds for Regulation Z

The CFPB is required to adjust the asset exemption threshold for depository institutions yearly according to the annual percentage change in the average Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. The threshold has been adjusted for calendar year 2021. Read more in the HMDA section of The Gold Book. 

What's New? NYS Paid Family Leave Extended to Siblings

The NYS Paid Family Leave Act of 2016 provides eligible employees job-protected and paid time off to care for new borns, adopted and foster children. Additionally, paid time off is provided to care for a family member with a serious health condition and to assist family members in helping spouses, domestic partners, children or parents deployed abroad on active military services. Effective October 2021, the definition of family member was expanded to include siblings. Read more in The Gold Book. 

What's New? Debt Collection FAQs

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued FAQs to assist financial institutions comply - see Debt Collection Rule FAQs in The Gold Book.