WASHINGTON, D.C. -

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently clarified its regulatory position to ensure the agency is aligned with last year’s Supreme Court decision regarding same-sex marriages.

The bureau recapped the court struck down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act as unconstitutional last June.

In order to fully implement this decision, the CFPB took steps to clarify how the decision affects the rules under its jurisdiction, including director Richard Cordray penning a memo to bureau staff.

In the memo, Cordray stressed that, to the extent permitted by federal law, it is the CFPB’s policy to recognize all lawful marriages valid at the time of the marriage in the jurisdiction where the marriage was celebrated. Cordray explained this protocol aligns the CFPB’s policy with other agencies across the federal government.

This policy applies to all of the laws, regulations, and policies that the CFPB administers, including the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), Truth in Lending Act (TILA), and Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA).

“This decision has important consequences for our work,” Cordray said.

“That means that when it comes to administering, enforcing, or interpreting the laws, regulations and policies within our jurisdiction, we use and interpret the terms like ‘spouse,’ ‘marriage,’ ‘married,’ ‘husband,’ ‘wife,’ and any other similar terms related to family or marital status to include lawful same-sex marriages and lawfully married same-sex spouses,” Cordray went on to say.