WASHINGTON, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has proposed putting debt collectors and personal credit rating firms under its jurisdiction.
The new agency, created by provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, is still staking out its territory, which, generally, is "non-bank" financial firms.
The Washington Post reported Thursday that the proposed rules would limit its oversight to collection agencies with annual revenue of $10 million or more. For credit reporting agencies, CFPB proposes to regulate firms with $7 million or higher in annual revenues.
Under those guidelines, the agency would have oversight over about 175 collection agencies and over about 30 credit bureaus, which would encompass 63 percent and 94 percent of those businesses, respectively.
"This oversight would help restore confidence that the federal government is standing beside the American consumer," CFPB Director Richard Cordray said in a statement.
He also said regulatory control could be more effective than the "blunt instrument of lawsuits," the Post reported.
