The Conference of State Bank Supervisors is calling upon the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to adopt a petition process to define “rural” counties as the bureau prepares to implement balloon “qualified mortgage” and escrow requirements for rural creditors. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act confers QM benefits on certain balloon loans if they are made in rural or underserved areas. In implementing the standard, the CFPB decided to use the USDA Economic Research Service’s Urban Influence Codes as...