Monthly Telephone Briefing

BCG offers its members monthly Telephone Briefings on legal and regulatory matters. Also, you have the option to listen to audio presentations of meetings archived for up to 12 months after their original presentation dates. This benefit is called, “Listen While You Work.” You simply select a topic, minimize the screen, and listen to a streaming audio presentation while you work at your desk.

Please feel free to sign up annually, register for the next scheduled BCG Monthly Telephone Briefing or download an archived Handout below.

Current BCG Monthly Telephone Briefing Topic(s)

Friday, January 17, 2020
12:00 - 1:30 p.m.

California Consumer Privacy Act: Where We Stand

On January 1, 2020 the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) went into effect. While the legislature’s last-minute amendments in 2019 and the California attorney general’s proposed (and still pending) regulations cleared up some ambiguities, many questions remain. Waiting for the attorney general to issue final regulations—which may not arrive until July 2020—is not the best option. The CCPA is currently operative and businesses need to make an effort to comply with it as is.

At the January 2020 BCG Telephone Briefing, we will share some insights derived from our work advising BCG members over the last several months about their CCPA compliance efforts. Please join us at the January BCG Telephone Briefing on Friday, January 17, 2020 for a discussion. Questions will be welcome. Download Handout Here!

Proposed Regulation F: Regulations Under the
Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

On May 21, 2019 the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued proposed regulations for the first time under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), 15 USC 1692 et seq. The FDCPA is one of the few consumer-protection statutes not implemented by regulation. For over 40 years since the FDCPA was first adopted, the statute has had to speak for itself, leading to a thicket of confusing (and sometimes contradictory) court rulings.

In general the May 2019 proposal would make only modest changes to the existing law, incorporating many of the FDCPA’s existing statutory provisions with only minor wording or organizational changes. However, on a few points the proposal would make some interesting changes, including providing a model form of debt validation notice and a safe harbor for voice messages and texts left on mobile phones.

We will discuss the FDCPA proposed regulations at the January Telephone Briefing on Friday, January 17, 2020. The presentation will provide a good refresher on the FDCPA generally.

Side bar points:

• Who is covered by the FDCPA?

• How does the federal FDCPA interact with the California Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act?

• What is a “debt collector” under the FDCPA?

• What debt collection practices are prohibited?

• What would the proposed regulation allow as to phone calls made to consumers’ cell phones?

• May I ever send an email to a consumer debtor’s work email?

• How often may I call a consumer debtor?

 Download Handout Here!