The regulatory battle between the CFPB and the Office of theComptroller of the Currency over the consumer agency's final arbitration rule raged on Monday, withthe OCC asking that the rule not be published until it conducted anindependent review of the data behind it.

“As the prudential regulator for the federal banking system, theOCC should be granted the opportunity to conduct an independentreview of the CFPB data to determine the safety and soundnessimplications of the Final Rule,” Acting Comptroller of the CurrencyKeith Noreika wrote in a letter to CFPB Director RichardCordray.

In the letter, Noreika said the CFPB, unlike the OCC, does notreview policies for safety and soundness. And he cited an agreementbetween the OCC and the CFPB in which the agencies agreed tocoordinate their policies.

The CFPB issued final rules last week restricting the use ofarbitration agreements in financial contracts. The rules have notyet been scheduled for publication in the Federal Register.

Under the rule, companies still can include arbitration clausesin their contracts, but they may not use those clauses to stopconsumers from being part of a class action lawsuit. The rulespecifies the language that must be used in the contract.

The rule also requires companies to submit to the CFPB detailedinformation about claims and awards made in arbitration. That dataeventually will be made public, with consumer names and identifyingdata removed.

After the rule was issued, Noreika expressed concern over theissues, saying that they could affect the safety and soundness ofthe banking system. As a result, the Financial Stability andOversight Council could vote to rescind the rules.

Noreika and Cordray are members of the council.

But Cordray said Friday that that OCC could not take the rulesto the council, since the agency did not object to the proposalearlier in the process.

However, for much of that process, Thomas Curry, an ObamaAdministration appointee, was comptroller and would have been lesslike to object to them.

Noreika is a banking attorney who, as acting comptroller, didnot have to go through the confirmation process or meet ethicsrequirements.

In his latest letter to Cordray, Noreika said that on July 5,his chief economist asked him to request the rule's backgrounddata. However, the final rule was published before he could makethat requires.

A CFPB spokesperson said the agency has received the letter andis reviewing it.