New regs for Thursday: drug tests and mortgage lending rules

In Thursday’s edition of the Federal Register, the Labor Department is removing an Obama-era rule that was repealed by Congress from the regulatory rulebook and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is asking the public to comment on its plan to reassess mortgage servicing rules.  

Here’s what to look for:

Drug testing: The Labor Department is officially removing the Obama-era rule limiting states’ ability to drug test for unemployment benefits from the regulatory rulebook.

Congress repealed the rule under the Congressional Review Act, and the president signed the resolution into law in March. The rule narrowed a 2012 law, which allowed states only to drug test people who were previously fired for drug use or work in jobs that regularly drug test, but listing what jobs the law included.

Mortgage rules: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is reviewing the mortgage servicing rules under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act that was amended under the Dodd Frank Wall Street Reform Law. 

The rule requires lenders to make a good faith effort to contact delinquent borrowers by the 36th day of their delinquency and inform the borrower that alternatives to foreclosure may be available. It also prohibits lenders from charging a borrower for it’s own insurance plan when the homeowner’s insurance is cancelled.

The Bureau is giving the public 60 days to comment on its plans for assessing the rule and provide recommendations and information that may be useful.