CFPB, Banking Regulators, and Others Adjust Civil Monetary Penalties for Inflation

In January 2020, regulators including the CFPB, Federal Reserve Board, NCUA, OCC, FDIC, FTC, and FCC, each published a final rule in the Federal Register adjusting the maximum civil money penalty (CMP) amounts under their respective jurisdictions, to account for inflation.

Each year, pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, federal agencies adjust their maximum CMPs by using an inflation multiplier provided by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).  The OMB’s inflation multiplier for 2020 is 1.01764.

The CFPB’s inflation adjustments became effective on January 15, 2020.  The 2020 tier 1 penalty for 2020 is $5,883.00; the tier 2 penalty is $29, 416.00; and the tier 3 penalty is $1,176,638.00.  The 2020 annual cap is $2,048,915.00.  More details about the CFPB’s inflation adjustment can be found here.

The Final Rules detailing the inflation adjustments made by other relevant agencies are available at the following links: FDIC, FCC, FTC, Fed, NCUA, and OCC.