16a-6-104. (UCCC) Powers of administrator; reliance on rules and regulations; written administrative interpretations; nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry.
This act shall be administered by the consumer credit commissioner of Kansas who is also referred to as the administrator. (1) In addition to other powers granted by this act, the administrator within the limitations provided by law may:
(a) Receive and act on complaints, take action designed to obtain voluntary compliance with the provisions of K.S.A. 16a-1-101 to 16a-9-102, inclusive, and amendments thereto, or commence proceedings on the administrator's own initiative;
(b) counsel persons and groups on their rights and duties under K.S.A. 16a-1-101 to 16a-9-102, inclusive, and amendments thereto;
(c) establish programs for the education of consumers with respect to credit practices and problems and as a condition in settlements of investigations or examinations, the administrator may receive a payment designated for consumer education to be expended as directed by the administrator for such purpose;
(d) make studies appropriate to effectuate the purposes and policies of K.S.A. 16a-1-101 to 16a-9-102, inclusive, and amendments thereto;
(e) adopt, amend and revoke rules and regulations to carry out the specific provisions of K.S.A. 16a-1-101 to 16a-9-102, inclusive, and amendments thereto, and to implement the requirements of the secure and fair enforcement for mortgage licensing act of 2008 (P.L. 110-289);
(f) issue, amend and revoke written administrative interpretations. Such written administrative interpretations shall be approved by the attorney general and published in the Kansas register within 15 days of issuance. The administrator shall annually publish all written administrative interpretations in effect;
(g) maintain offices within this state; and
(h) appoint any necessary attorneys, hearing examiners, clerks, and other employees and agents and fix their compensation, and authorize attorneys appointed under this section to appear for and represent the administrator in court;
(i) examine periodically at intervals the administrator deems appropriate the loans, business and records of every licensee, registrant or person filing notification pursuant to K.S.A. 16a-6-201 through 16a-6-203, and amendments thereto, except licensees which are supervised financial organizations. The official or agency responsible for the supervision of each supervised financial organization shall examine the loans, business and records of each such organization in the manner and periodically at intervals prescribed by the administrator. In addition, for the purpose of discovering violations of K.S.A. 16a-1-101 through 16a-9-102, and amendments thereto, or securing information lawfully required, the administrator or the official or agency to whose supervision the organization is subject to K.S.A. 16a-6-105, and amendments thereto, may at any time investigate the loans, business and records of any supervised lender. For examination purposes the administrator shall have free and reasonable access to the offices, places of business and records of the lender, registrant or person filing notification and the administrator may control access to any documents and records of a licensee, registrant or person filing notification under examination;
(j) refer such evidence as may be available concerning violations of this act or of any rule and regulation or order to the attorney general or the proper county or district attorney, who may in the prosecutor's discretion, with or without such a reference, institute the appropriate criminal proceedings under this act. Upon receipt of such reference, the attorney general or the county attorney or district attorney may request that a duly employed attorney of the administrator prosecute or assist in the prosecution of such violation on behalf of the state. Upon approval of the administrator, such employee shall be appointed special prosecutor for the attorney general or the county attorney or district attorney to serve without compensation from the attorney general or the county attorney or district attorney. Such special prosecutor shall have all the powers and duties prescribed by law for assistant attorneys general or assistant county or district attorneys, and such other powers and duties as are lawfully delegated to such special prosecutors by the attorney general or the county attorney or district attorney;
(k) if deemed necessary by the administrator, require fingerprinting of any applicant, licensee, members thereof if a copartnership or association, or officers and directors thereof if a corporation, or any agent or other person acting on their behalf. The administrator, or the administrator's designee, may submit such fingerprints to the Kansas bureau of investigation, federal bureau of investigation, or other law enforcement agency for the purposes of verifying the identity of such persons and obtaining records of their criminal arrests and convictions. For purposes of this section and in order to reduce the points of contact which the federal bureau of investigation may have to maintain with the individual states, the administrator may use the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry as a channeling agent for requesting information from and distributing information to the department of justice or any governmental agency;
(l) exchange information regarding the administration of this act with any agency of the United States or any state which regulates the licensee, registrant or person required to file notification, or who administers statutes, rules and regulations or other programs related to consumer credit and to enter into information sharing arrangements with other governmental agencies or associations representing governmental agencies which are deemed necessary or beneficial to the administration of this act;
(m) require that any applicant, licensee, registrant or other person complete a minimum number of prelicensing education hours and complete continuing education hours on an annual basis. Prelicensing and continuing education courses shall be approved by the administrator or the administrator's designee and may be made a condition of the application approval and renewal;
(n) require that any applicant, licensee, registrant or other person successfully pass a standardized examination designed to establish such person's knowledge of residential mortgage loan origination transactions and all applicable state and federal law. Such examinations shall be created and administered by the administrator or the administrator's designee and may be made a condition of application approval;
(o) use the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry as a channeling agent for requesting and distributing any information regarding residential mortgage loan originator registration or supervised lender licensing to and from any source so directed by the administrator;
(p) establish relationships or contracts with the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry or other entities to collect and maintain records and process transaction fees or other fees related to applicants, licensees, registrants or other persons subject to the act and to take such other actions as may be reasonably necessary to participate in the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry. The administrator shall regularly report violations of law, as well as enforcement actions and other relevant information, to the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry, and make publicly available the proposed budget, fees, and audited financial statements of the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry as may be prepared by the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry and provided to the administrator;
(q) require that any residential mortgage loan originator applicant, registrant or other person successfully pass a standardized examination designed to establish such person's knowledge of mortgage transactions and all applicable state and federal law. Such examinations shall be created and administered by the administrator or the administrator's designee, and may be made a condition of application approval or application renewal;
(r) require that any mortgage loan originator applicant, registrant or other person complete a minimum number of prelicensing education hours and complete continuing education hours on an annual or biannual basis. Prelicensing and continuing education courses shall be approved by the administrator or the administrator's designee and may be made a condition of application approval and renewal; and
(s) require any licensee or registrant to file reports with the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry in the form prescribed by the administrator or the administrator's designee.
(2) The administrator shall enforce the provisions of this act and the rules and regulations and interpretations adopted thereunder with respect to a creditor, unless the creditor's compliance is regulated exclusively or primarily by another state or federal agency.
(3) To keep the administrator's rules and regulations in harmony with the rules of administrators in other jurisdictions which enact the revised uniform consumer credit code, the administrator, so far as is consistent with the purposes, policies and provisions of K.S.A. 16a-1-101 to 16a-9-102, inclusive, and amendments thereto, may:
(a) Before adopting, amending and revoking rules and regulations, advise and consult with administrators in other jurisdictions which enact the uniform consumer credit code; and
(b) in adopting, amending and revoking rules and regulations, take into consideration the rules of administrators in other jurisdictions which enact the revised uniform consumer credit code.
(4) Except for refund of an excess charge, no liability is imposed under K.S.A. 16a-1-101 to 16a-9-102, inclusive, and amendments thereto, for an act done or omitted in conformity with a rule and regulation or written administrative interpretation of the administrator in effect at the time of the act or omission notwithstanding that after the act or omission the rule and regulation or written administrative interpretation may be determined by judicial or other authority to be invalid for any reason.
(5) The administrator prior to December 1 of each year shall establish such fees as are authorized under the provisions of K.S.A. 16a-1-101 to 16a-9-102, inclusive, and amendments thereto, for the ensuing calendar year in such amounts as the administrator may determine to be sufficient to meet the budget requirements of the administrator for each fiscal year.
History: L. 1973, ch. 85, § 97; L. 1976, ch. 98, § 2; L. 1981, ch. 93, § 17; L. 1992, ch. 80, § 3; L. 1999, ch. 107, § 28; L. 2005, ch. 144, § 18; L. 2009, ch. 29, § 21; July 1.
Revisor's Note:
Office of consumer credit commissioner abolished and powers, duties and functions transferred to deputy commissioner for consumer and mortgage lending, see 75-1314 et seq.