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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 68 J O U R N A L April 2023 administratively with HUD, and for federal court actions brought by private plaintiffs. Under the 2013 rule, the discriminatory effects framework was straightforward: a policy that had a discriminatory effect on a protected class was unlawful if it was not necessary to achieve a substantial, legiti- mate, nondiscriminatory interest or if a less discriminatory alternative could also serve that interest. The 2020 rule complicated that analysis by adding new pleading requirements, new proof requirements, and new defenses, all of which made it more difficult to establish that a policy violates the Fair Housing Act and harder for entities regulated by the Fair Housing Act to assess whether their policies were lawful. HUD now returns to the 2013 rule's straightforward analysis. This Final Rule will go into effect 30 days after it is published in the Federal Register. Due to a preliminary injunction staying the implementation of the 2020 Rule in Massa- chusetts Fair Housing Center v. HUD, the 2020 Rule never went into effect, and the 2013 Rule—which has been in place for nearly a decade—has been and is currently still in ef- fect. Accordingly, regulated entities that were complying with the 2013 Rule not not need to change any practices they have in place to comply with this rule. CFPB SEEKS INPUT ON DATA COLLECTION FIRMS T he Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has launched an in- quiry into companies that track and collect information on people's personal lives. In issuing this new Request for Informa- tion, the CFPB wants to understand the full scope and breadth of data brokers and their business practices, their impact on the daily lives of consumers, and whether they are all playing by the same rules. This request is a chance for the public to share feedback about companies that play a significant role in people's lives and the economy. This feed- back will shed light on the current state of an industry that largely operates out of public view and inform the CFPB's future work to ensure that these companies comply with federal law. "Modern data surveillance practices have allowed companies to hover over our digital lives and monetize our most sensitive data," CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said. "Our inquiry will inform whether rules under the Fair Credit Reporting Act reflect these market realities." Congress passed the Fair Credit Re- porting Act (FCRA) in response to concerns about data brokers assembling detailed dossiers about consumers and selling this information to those making employment, credit, and other decisions. People often have little choice about whether to enter into business relationships with these companies or whether they will be tracked, yet the data these companies collect may nevertheless play a decisive role in signif- icant life decisions, like buying a home or finding a job. The FCRA provides a range of protections, including accuracy standards, dispute rights, and restrictions on how data can be used. The law covers data brokers like credit reporting companies and background screening firms, as well as those who report information to these firms. The inquiry seeks information about business practices employed in the market today to inform the CFPB's efforts to admin- ister the law, including planned rulemaking under the FCRA. The CFPB is interested in hearing about the business models and practices of the data broker market, including details about the types of data the brokers collect and sell and the sources they rely upon. The feedback received will help the CFPB gain a better understanding of the cur- rent state of business practices in this area. "Modern data surveillance practices have allowed companies to hover over our digital lives and monetize our most sensitive data. Our inquiry will inform whether rules under the Fair Credit Reporting Act reflect these market realities." —Rohit Chopra, Director, CFPB