Fair Lending, Fair Housing, and Equitable Housing Finance Plans

FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY <CFR>12 CFR Part 1293</CFR> <RIN>RIN 2590-AB53</RIN> <SUBJECT>Fair Lending, Fair Housing, and Equitable Housing Finance Plans</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Federal Housing Finance Agency. <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Notice of proposed rulemaking; repeal of 12 CFR part 1293. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> The Federal Housing Finance Agency (“FHFA” or the “Agency”) is requesting comment on the notice of proposed rulemaking repealing the Fair Lending, Fair Housing, and Equitable Housing Finance Plans regulation. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> FHFA will accept written comments on the proposed rule on or before September 26, 2025. </EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">ADDRESSES:</HD> You may submit your comments on the proposed rule, identified by regulatory information number (RIN) 2590-AB53, by any one of the following methods: • <E T="03">Agency Website: https://www.fhfa.gov/regulation/federal-register?comments=open.</E> • <E T="03">Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.</E> Follow the instructions for submitting comments. If you submit your comment to the Federal eRulemaking Portal, please also send it by email to FHFA at <E T="03">RegComments@fhfa.gov</E> to ensure timely receipt by FHFA. Include the following information in the subject line of your submission: Comments/RIN 2590-AB53. • <E T="03">Hand Delivered/Courier:</E> The hand delivery address is: Clinton Jones, General Counsel, Attention: Comments/RIN 2590-AB53, Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC 20219. Deliver the package at the Seventh Street entrance Guard Desk, First Floor, on business days between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. • <E T="03">U.S. Mail, United Parcel Service, Federal Express, or Other Mail Service:</E> The mailing address for comments is: Clinton Jones, General Counsel, Attention: Comments/RIN 2590-AB53, Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC 20219. Please note that all mail sent to FHFA via U.S. Mail is routed through a national irradiation facility, a process that may delay delivery by approximately two weeks. <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Leda Bloomfield, Associate Director, Office of Affordable Housing and Community Investment, (202) 649-3415, <E T="03">Leda.Bloomfield@fhfa.gov;</E> Clinton Jones, General Counsel, Office of General Counsel, (202) 649-3006, <E T="03">Clinton.Jones@fhfa.gov.</E> These are not toll-free numbers. The mailing address is: Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC 20219. For TTY/TRS users with hearing and speech disabilities, dial 711 and ask to be connected to any of the contact numbers above. </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">I. Request for Comments</HD> FHFA invites comments on all aspects of the proposed rule and will take all comments into consideration before issuing a final rule. Comments will be posted to the electronic rulemaking docket on the FHFA public website at <E T="03">https://www.fhfa.gov,</E> except as described below. Commenters should submit only information the commenter wishes to make available publicly. FHFA may post only a single representative example of identical or substantially identical comments, and in such cases will generally identify the number of identical or substantially identical comments represented by the posted example. FHFA may, in its discretion, redact or refrain from posting all or any portion of any comment that contains content that is obscene, vulgar, profane, or threatens harm. All comments, including those that are redacted or not posted, will be retained in their original form in FHFA's internal rulemaking file and considered as required by all applicable laws. Commenters that would like FHFA to consider any portion of their comment exempt from disclosure on the basis that it contains trade secrets, or financial, confidential or proprietary data or information, should follow the procedures in section IV.D. of FHFA's <E T="03">Policy on Communications with Outside Parties in Connection with FHFA Rulemakings,</E> at <E T="03">https://www.fhfa.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Ex-Parte-Communications-Public-Policy_3-5-19.pdf.</E> FHFA cannot guarantee that such data or information, or the identity of the commenter, will remain confidential if disclosure is sought pursuant to an applicable statute or regulation. <E T="03">See</E> 12 CFR 1202.8 and 1214.2 and the FHFA <E T="03">FOIA Reference Guide</E> at <E T="03">https://www.fhfa.gov/about/foia-reference-guide</E> for additional information. <HD SOURCE="HD1">II. Purpose of Proposed Rule Repealing 12 CFR Part 1293</HD> Pursuant to Executive Order (“Executive Order” or “E.O.”) 14219, FHFA reviewed its regulations for consistency with law and Administration policy. <SU>1</SU> <FTREF/> FHFA also reviewed existing FHFA regulations with a goal of improving prudence and financial responsibility in the expenditure of funds, from both public and private sources, alleviating unnecessary regulatory burdens, avoiding confusion in roles and responsibilities with other agencies having primary jurisdiction, and avoiding duplicative statements of FHFA authorities. In furtherance of these goals, FHFA proposes to repeal 12 CFR part 1293 (part 1293). <FTNT> <SU>1</SU>  90 FR 10583 (February 25, 2025). </FTNT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">III. Agency Authority To Repeal 12 CFR Part 1293</HD> The Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992, as amended (12 U.S.C. 4501 <E T="03">et seq.</E> ) (“Safety and Soundness Act”), authorizes FHFA to exercise general regulatory authority over the Federal National Mortgage Corporation (“Fannie Mae”), the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”), and the Federal Home Loan Banks (“FHLBanks”) (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac collectively, the “Enterprises;” the Enterprises and the Banks collectively, “regulated entities”), to ensure that the purposes of the Safety and Soundness Act, the Fannie Mae Charter Act, the Freddie Mac Corporation Act, and any other applicable law are carried out. <SU>2</SU> <FTREF/> The Safety and Soundness Act also authorizes FHFA to issue, following notice and comment requirements under the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), any regulation necessary to carry out its duties with respect to the Enterprises and to ensure that the purposes of the Safety and Soundness Act, the Fannie Mae Charter Act, and the Freddie Mac Corporation Act are accomplished. <SU>3</SU> <FTREF/> FHFA's rulemaking authority extends to amendment or repeal of a regulation, including regulations that impose unnecessary regulatory burdens. <SU>4</SU> <FTREF/> Additionally, part 1293 is not a regulation mandated by statute, and FHFA has discretion to modify or repeal as appropriate. <FTNT> <SU>2</SU>  12 U.S.C. 4511(b). </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>3</SU>  12 U.S.C. 4526(a) and (b) (requiring regulations to be issued after notice and opportunity for comment pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553). </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>4</SU>  The APA defines “rule making” as the “agency process for formulating, amending, or repealing a rule.” 5 U.S.C. 551(5). </FTNT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">IV. Regulatory Background</HD> FHFA published its proposed regulation on Fair Lending, Fair Housing, Equitable Housing Finance Plans on April 26, 2023  <SU>5</SU> <FTREF/> and its final rule on May 16, 2024. <SU>6</SU> <FTREF/> FHFA determined the final rule to be a major rule with an estimated annual impact on the economy in excess of $100 million. FHFA was not required by statute to publish the regulation. The regulation includes: (1) a requirement that each regulated entity comply with the Fair Housing Act 42 U.S.C. 3601 <E T="03">et seq.,</E> Equal Credit Opportunity Act (“ECOA”) 15 U.S.C. 1691 <E T="03">et seq.,</E> the fair housing provisions of the Safety and Soundness Act 12 U.S.C. 4545, and the prohibitions on Unfair or Deceptive Acts or Practices (“UDAP”) under the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) Act, 15 U.S.C. 45; (2) a specific duty applying to directors serving on a regulated entity board of directors relating to fair lending and UDAP compliance; and (3) requirements relating to Enterprise equitable housing finance planning. The regulation specifies that it does not establish any third-party rights. <FTNT> <SU>5</SU>  88 FR 25293 (April 26, 2023). </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>6</SU>  89 FR 42768 (May 16, 2024). FHFA determined the final rule to exceed the $100 million threshold in annual economic impact and to qualify as a major rule under the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 <E T="03">et seq.</E> FHFA verified the determination with the Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. </FTNT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">V. Grounds for Repeal</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD2">A. Standard of Review for Regulatory Repeal</HD> The APA requires a reviewing court to set aside agency action that is, among other things, “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law” or “in excess of statutory jurisdiction, authority, or limitations, or short of statutory right.”  <SU>7</SU> <FTREF/> Agency actions subject to a court's review include repeal of a regulation. <SU>8</SU> <FTREF/> FHFA's authority extends to amendment or repeal of a regulation. <SU>9</SU> <FTREF/> FHFA proposes to repeal part 1293 to enhance prudence and financially responsible expenditure of funds, from both public and private sources; alleviate unnecessary regulatory burdens; avoid confusion about roles and responsibilities relative to other agencies with primary statutory jurisdiction; avoid redundant statements about FHFA authority; and align with Administration po ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 66k characters. 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