In contrast to current meteorological trends, predictions for the coming regulatory climate, according to one consultant, show escalating temperatures with little chance of relief.

"Right now the regulatory climate is hot and it's been that way for a while," said Pam Perdue, chief compliance strategist for Continuity Control, a New Haven, Conn., financial consulting firm. "There's a high pressure system over the Midwest across all agencies, and the storm, as it were, has stalled over the center of the country."

The regulatory storm is much broader than community financial institutions have faced in the past, Perdue said during a Nov. 13 Continuity Control webinar entitled, "Enforcement Actions Survey: How to Avoid Being the Next Victim of Increased Regulatory Scrutiny."