Section 1. Short title

This Act may be cited as the Eliminating Fraud in the CFPB’s Complaint Database Act.

Sec. 2. Collecting and tracking complaints

Section 1013(b)(3) of the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 5493(b)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

(E) Consumer Attestation

(i) In general

The Director shall require, using such verification mechanisms as the Director determines appropriate, each person who submits a complaint to the unit established under this paragraph to attest, under penalty of perjury, that—

(I)

the information and documentation provided in the complaint is true and accurate to the best of the consumer’s knowledge;

(II)

the complaint is being submitted directly by—

(aa)

the consumer; or

(bb)

a representative authorized to act on the behalf of the consumer who provides sufficient proof of identification and a written document signed by the consumer that permits the third party to act on the behalf of the consumer specifically as it relates to submitting a complaint to the Bureau; and

(III)

the consumer directly informed the covered person who is required to respond to complaints under subsection (b) and (c) of section 1034 to which the complaint relates of the issue about which the consumer is submitting the complaint not less than 60 days before submitting the complaint to the Bureau.

(ii) Notification requirement

If the Director finds, when carrying out clause (i), that a complaint submitted in the name of a consumer was not submitted by such consumer or by a representative authorized to act on the behalf of such consumer, the Director shall to the degree practicable—

(I)

inform the consumer in whose name the complaint was filed that such complaint was submitted in their name, without their authorization; and

(II)

provide to the covered person who is required to respond to complaints under subsection (b) and (c) of section 1034 to whom the complaint relates the name of the person who submitted the complaint without the authorization of the consumer.

(iii) Sufficient proof of identification defined

The term sufficient proof of identification means information or documentation that identifies a protected consumer and a protected consumer’s representative and includes—

(I)

a social security number or a copy of a social security card issued by the Social Security Administration;

(II)

a certified or official copy of a birth certificate issued by the entity authorized to issue the birth certificate; or

(III)

a copy of a driver’s license, an identification card issued by the motor vehicle administration, or any other government issued identification.

(F) Closure of duplicative, frivolous or unauthorized complaints

—

(i) In general

A covered person who is required to respond to complaints under subsection (b) and (c) of section 1034 that receives a consumer complaint from the unit established under this paragraph may, upon reasonable determination, close such complaint without further action if—

(I)

the complaint, as determined by such covered person—

(aa)

is duplicative of a previously submitted and resolved complaint submitted by the same consumer relating to the same issue;

(bb)

is frivolous or lacking a basis in fact;

(cc)

was not submitted by the consumer or an individual authorized to act on the behalf of the consumer; or

(dd)

was submitted for a fraudulent or misleading purpose;

(II)

such covered person was not directly informed by the consumer of the issue about which the consumer submitted the complaint not less than 60 days before the consumer submitted the complaint; or

(III)

such covered person was directly informed by the consumer of the issue about which the consumer submitted the complaint and such covered person responded to such consumer in a manner that remedied the issue raised by the consumer; or

(ii) Recording

If a covered person who is required to respond to complaints under subsection (b) and (c) of section 1034 closes a complaint under clause (i), such covered person shall notify the unit established under this paragraph of such closure and the reason for such closure and such unit shall record such information in the database established under this paragraph.

(G) Confidentiality

(i) In general

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Bureau shall ensure that narrative content included in complaints submitted by consumers to the unit established under this paragraph and narrative content included in responses from covered persons who are required to respond to complaints under subsection (b) and (c) of section 1034 who receive complaints from the unit established under this paragraph remain confidential and are not published or made publicly viewable.

(ii) Aggregation of data

The Bureau may publish aggregated data about complaints received from consumers and analyses of trends in such complaints if such data and analyses do not include personally identifiable information or specific narrative content that could reasonably be linked to an individual consumer or covered person who is required to respond to complaints under subsection (b) and (c) of section 1034.