Written By: Lisa Whitley AFC® Chair, AFCPE Government Relations Task Force

Thanks to Schoolhouse Rock, we all know how federal laws get made. But do you know what happens next? 

Despite the voluminous length of most pieces of legislation, many of the finer implementation details are left out, to be specified later through regulations promulgated by the various federal agencies. To quote the Department of Labor: 

“Rulemaking is the term used when a federal government agency creates, modifies, or deletes rules published in the Code of Federal Regulations (also known as the CFR). Rules are government agency statements that either: 

• Implement, explain, or prescribe law or policy. 

• Describe an agency’s organization, procedure, or practice requirements.” 

If laws tell us what to do, rules (regulations) tell us how. And here’s what makes the federal rulemaking process so, well, cool: You get to participate! 

The Federal Register 

The Federal Register is a government publication that lists all the rules that the various federal agencies either propose to put in place or have recently put in place. The difference between the Federal Register and the CFR is that the Register is updated daily; the CFR is published only annually. The Register “updates” the CFR. 

What’s Your Role? 

Federal rulemaking starts with a comment period. Whenever a new rule is proposed by an agency in the Federal Register, members of the public are invited to submit their opinions on the rule. Not just lobbyists or large corporations: You!  

Think about the myriad of financial wellness concerns that face your AFC clientele — access to credit, affordable housing, saving for retirement. Many of these issues are affected by federal policies that are implemented through regulations.  

There have been several recent rules proposed that are likely of particular interest to AFCs: 

• Concerned about the cost of increasingly popular paycheck advance products, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) proposed a rule in July 2024 that would specify that these products are loans and as such subject to the Truth in Lending Act. 

• The CFPB also recently proposed a new rule that seeks to reduce barriers to assistance for home mortgage borrowers facing distress who have limited English proficiency. 

• Many AFCs have likely heard of the proposed CFPB rule to limit the reporting of medical debt to credit reporting agencies. 

• The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) proposed a rule to increase access to HUD housing options for justice-involved individuals. 

• Earlier this year, the Department of Labor (DOL) sought comment on how to best implement a Retirement Savings Lost and Found database, as required by the mammoth retirement savings legislation known as SECURE 2.0. 

(The comment period for all the above examples is now closed.) 

As an AFC, you are an “expert witness,” well-positioned to lend your expertise to policy decisions by submitting a comment to proposed rules. 

How to Submit a Comment 

To submit a comment, your first stop is the  Federal Register Document Search page. From there, you can search for proposed rules by Agency. While proposed rules that touch on areas of interest to AFCs can come from any agency, you may want to start with the “usual suspects”: CFPB, Federal Trade Commission, DOL, etc. Subscribing to email updates from these agencies or following them on social media is another way to stay abreast of new proposed rules. 

Once you locate the rule that you wish to comment on, simply follow the directions on screen (“Submit A Formal Complaint”). This is a helpful handout from the DOL that illustrates the comment process with tips on how to write an effective comment. 

Make Your Voice Heard 

One of the roles of the AFCPE Government Relations Task Force is to make AFCPE members aware of specific policy issues that concern AFCs and their clients. Part of that mandate is monitoring proposed rules from certain key agencies such as the CFPB and communicating when we see an issue of interest. 

Following advocacy groups such as the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), Consumer Federation of America (CFA), Center for Responsible Lending (CLA)  and others is another way that AFCs can stay abreast of developments that affect the financial wellness of their clients. 

Looking for more ways to get involved? Check out the AFCPE Advocacy Toolkit on the Membership Dashboard under Resources. The Toolkit contains tools, resources, and articles to help keep you informed and take action.