Update on Virginia laws

As of July 1, 2008, Virginia has required that all employers must obtain a criminal history record from the Virginia Central Criminal Records Exchange for all new employees who have access to personal identifying or financial information from customers. The report must show that the prospective employee has not been convicted of any felony or misdemeanor involving fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation in any state or under federal law. If there is such a conviction, no matter how old, you must get permission from the Bureau of Financial Institutions to hire this person. You must keep the criminal records report in the event of an examination of your books and records by the Bureau of Financial Institutions.

Employers also need to provide initial training and continuing education for all employees who are involved in the origination, marketing, underwriting, closing or quality control of Virginia loans. The initial education must be provided to all who were your employees who fit the definition that I just stated and anyone else who fits that definition who is hired after July 1, 2008. You have until May 1, 2009 to have the initial training completed for employees who were with your company on July 1, 2009. You have 90 days to have the initial training completed for anyone new who is hired after July 1, 2009. The initial training consists of at least 12 hours of federal law including the Truth-in-Lending Act, RESPA, Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 4 hours of Virginia law, including the Virginia Mortgage Lender and Broker Act and 2 hours of mortgage fraud prevention, including the penalties for participating in mortgage fraud. Marketing and sales training courses don’t count.

Additionally, there is continuing education required for these employees on an annual basis after the initial training and consists of at least 4 hours of federal law, 2 hours of Virginia law, and 1 hours of mortgage fraud prevention. All employers must keep documentation showing which employees had initial and then continuing education, which courses they took (you must provide descriptions of each course), how many hours each course was, who the provider was, and when each course was completed.

You should have received a copy of this new law if you are currently licensed in Virginia. If you are like many of my clients, when you receive notice of a new law, you quickly skim the notice and decide you can’t figure out what it says. And then you wonder what you need to do next. You should have retained a lawyer to explain the new laws to you if you cannot understand what the Bureau of Financial Institutions has sent to you. Your inability to understand the new laws, rules, or regulations will not serve to protect you if you violate them.