California lawmakers are considering creating a state-level watchdog agency akin to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to enhance enforcement of consumer laws and fill the void left by the federal agency.

Joseph Otting, acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, set the rumor mills in motion last week when he told an audience at George Mason University Law School that the agency would finish work this summer on final capital rules for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Several industry participants have criticized the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s proposed rule on the use of future credit scoring models by the government-sponsored enterprises.

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling last week involving the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and foreclosures in certain states could prompt legislation from Congress.

Industry groups over the past few months have repeatedly asked the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to revise its rule regarding how loan originators are paid and make the is-sue a “top priority.”

An overhaul of the Community Reinvestment Act is gaining traction, with two more major financial regulators outlining their views and priorities.

Joseph Otting’s dual role as acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency puts him in a position to push hard for changes that will help create a “healthy” non-agency mortgage market, according to the Structured Finance Industry Group.

Market participants welcomed the new FHA guidance that allows the use of third-party vendors as an alternative method to verify a borrower’s employment, income and assets directly with the employer and financial institutions.

Violation of borrowing pacts; a new strategy for TIAA...

In a show of bipartisanship, work on reforms in the credit bureau industry kicked off this week, with legislation circulating and the House Financial Services Committee’s hearing testimony from CEOs of three major rating agencies.