Wednesday, U.S. Representative Terri Sewell, D-Selma, voted in favor of the Comprehensive Credit Reporting Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation, and Transparency Act of 2020 (Comprehensive CREDIT Act), HR3621.
Sponsors claim that the legislation addresses many credit reporting flaws by enhancing consumers’ rights, requiring more transparency over the consumer reporting and credit scoring processes, and increasing the accountability of credit reporting agencies (CRAs) and companies that develop credit scoring models.
“More than 40 million Americans have inaccurate credit reports, which can determine job opportunities, how much you pay for car insurance and whether you will qualify to rent an apartment,” Sewell said. “What’s more, consumers have little recourse to correct errors on their reports. The Comprehensive CREDIT Act will help fix this flawed system and empower consumers to rehabilitate their damaged credit.”
“I am especially proud of the provisions in the bill that repair credit reports of consumers who have been victimized by predatory lenders and protect those with debt from medically-necessary procedures,” Sewell said.
Was sponsored by Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, D-Massachusetts.
“I’m thrilled that my colleagues in the House voted to create a credit reporting system that works for all by passing my bill, the Comprehensive Credit Reporting Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation and Transparency (CREDIT) Act,” Congresswoman Pressley said. “When credit reports determine where you can live, work and how much you will have to pay for everything from a car to a college degree, consumers deserve a system that ensures equity, transparency and accountability. American families are finding themselves trapped in cycles of debt, simply for trying to afford basic needs like healthcare and education. The Comprehensive CREDIT Act will greatly improve a fundamentally flawed credit reporting system, providing much needed relief for families across the country.”
Sponsors claim that the Comprehensive CREDIT Act addresses the deep flaws in the current credit reporting system and includes tenets of several bills introduced by members of the House Financial Services Committee, including Congresswoman Pressley’s Student Borrower Credit Improvement Act, which establishes protections for private student loan borrowers similar to those that already exist for borrowers with federal student loans.
The Comprehensive CREDIT Act has broad support from consumer, civil rights, labor, community, and industry organizations including Americans for Financial Reform, Consumer Federation of America, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, National Consumer Law Center, National Fair Housing Alliance, Public Citizen, and National Association of Realtors, among others.
Opponents argue that it vastly expands the regulatory burden on lenders and would actually make it harder for Americans to obtain credit.
Congresswoman Pressley is a staunch advocate for consumer and borrower protections. Last year, she introduced HR5021, the Ending Debt Collection Harassment Act, legislation that requires the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to regulate the debt collection industry. She also led a letter with Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters, D-CA, and Congresswoman Katie Porter, D-California, to CFPB Director Kathleen Kraninger slamming the CFPB’s decision to roll back protections that prevent debt collectors from harassing Americans.
The bill passed the House of Representatives 221 to 189. Not one Republican in the House voted for the bill, which makes its chances of being passed by the Republican controlled Senate highly unlikely and signed into law by President Donald J. Trump (R) unlikely.
Congresswoman Terri Sewell is serving in her fifth term representing Alabama’s Seventh Congressional District. Sewell is running for a sixth term and has no Democratic or Republican opponent.
