Why do ducks have feathers? To cover up their butt quacks. Why did Congress pass a three-month, stopgap funding bill? To cover their… never mind. But the government continues to function, and the good news for borrowers and lenders is that the NFIP (National Flood Insurance Program) is extended until March. (If you’d like to know the difference between private and public flood insurance, here you go.) Yes, Congress acted. Congress could act by doing away with Dodd Frank, and therefore the CFPB, but that is highly doubtful. No one knows what may happen at the CFPB. Hopefully, plenty of FAQs and publishing guidelines, more implementation guidance and not regulatory guidance; advisory opinions, arguably, can change the rules. FAQs to clarify the rules: Notice and comment is a very important process. Perhaps a pause in enforcement cases, although no one wants a regulator that does nothing. Action against individual broker shops is unlikely because there are so many of them. The loans are going to organizations that are monitored by the CFPB. Brokers don’t have the resources to put up a fight. The CFPB won’t randomly sample brokers, since it doesn’t have the resources. (Today’s podcast can be found here and is sponsored by Gallus Insights, the go-to reporting and analytics platform for mortgage lenders and servicers. Gallus makes it easy to access real-time data, create custom reports, and uncover actionable insights, all with a user-friendly design. Simplify your reporting, streamline your decisions, and drive profitability with Gallus Insights. Hear an interview with Gallus Insights’ Augie Del Rio on data trends in the industry and specific case studies that highlight the importance of data.)