47-18-5532 - Powers of administrator. [Effective July 1, 2010.] - Tennessee Statutes

47-18-5532. Powers of administrator. [Effective July 1, 2010.]

(a)  The administrator may act on its own initiative or in response to complaints and may receive complaints, take action to obtain voluntary compliance with this part, refer cases to the attorney general and reporter, or a district attorney general or other appropriate law enforcement official, and seek or provide remedies as provided in this part.

(b)  The administrator may investigate and examine, in this state or elsewhere, by subpoena or otherwise, the activities, books, accounts and records of a person that provides or offers to provide debt-management services, or a person to which a provider has delegated its obligations under an agreement or this part, to determine compliance with this part. Information that identifies individuals who have agreements with the provider shall not be disclosed to the public. In connection with the investigation, the administrator may:

     (1)  Charge the person the reasonable expenses necessarily incurred to conduct the examination;

     (2)  Require or permit a person to file a statement under oath as to all the facts and circumstances of a matter to be investigated; and

     (3)  Seek a court order authorizing seizure from a bank at which the person maintains a trust account required by § 47-18-5522, any or all money, books, records, accounts and other property of the provider that is in the control of the bank and relates to individuals who reside in this state.

(c)  The administrator may promulgate rules to administer this part. The rules shall be promulgated in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5.

(d)  The administrator may enter into cooperative arrangements with any other federal or state agency having authority over providers and may exchange with any of those agencies information about a provider, including information obtained during an examination of the provider.

(e)  The administrator, by rule, shall establish reasonable fees to be paid by providers for the expense of administering this part.

(f)  The administrator, by rule, shall adopt dollar amounts instead of those specified in §§ 47-18-5502, 47-18-5505, 47-18-5509, 47-18-5513, 47-18-5523, 47-18-5533 and 47-18-5535 to reflect inflation, as measured by the United States bureau of labor statistics consumer price index for all urban consumers or, if that index is not available, another index adopted by rule by the administrator. The administrator shall adopt a base year and adjust the dollar amounts, effective on July 1 of each year, if the change in the index from the base year, as of December 31 of the preceding year, is at least ten percent (10%). The dollar amount must be rounded to the nearest one hundred dollars ($100), except that the amounts in § 47-18-5523 must be rounded to the nearest dollar.

(g)  The administrator shall notify registered providers of any change in dollar amounts made pursuant to subsection (f) and make that information available to the public.

(h)  The administrator shall prescribe fees and penalties under this part such that all fees collectively shall sustain the requirements of this part pursuant to the requirements of § 4-29-121.

[Acts 2009, ch. 469, § 1.]