Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance Adopts New Rules for Debt-Management Services

The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance’s (“TDCI”) new rules and regulations for debt-management services, proposed last October, went into effect on January 26, 2017. The new rules: (1) require electronically scanned fingerprints; (2) calculate for an increase in the registration fee for debt-management services; (3) require accreditation; and (4) specify a new certification process for employees of debt-management businesses.

First, anyone who is required to submit fingerprints under the Uniform Debt-Management Services Act must now submit those fingerprints electronically to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Also, the registration fee will be adjusted according to inflation based on the consumer price index.

Tennessee debt-management service companies must also become accredited according to TDCI’s standards by January 1, 2018. Furthermore, the debt-management service company’s counselors and debt specialists must be certified by a training program or certifying organization approved under the new rule by January 1, 2018.

The new rules and regulations can be found here: http://share.tn.gov/sos/rules_filings/10-23-16.pdf.