For Immediate Release: January 30, 2020
Contact: Carter Dougherty at (202) 251-6700 or carter@ourfinancialsecurity.org

Yesterday, the House passed the Comprehensive Credit Reporting Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation, and Transparency Act of 2020 (Comprehensive CREDIT Act), H.R. 3621, in a 221-189 vote. The bill would improve accuracy in credit reporting, increase access to credit reports and improve transparency in credit reporting so that certain individuals are not put at greater risk for  predatory financial products.

The Comprehensive CREDIT Act will help improve the financial security of millions of Americans by increasing accuracy and transparency in credit reporting. This legislation will fix the broken system for credit reporting disputes, improve the accuracy of reporting, restrict the use of credit information for employment, protect the victims of abusive lending from punitive reporting practices, help consumers understand their credit worthiness, better protect consumers from  the negative impacts of medical debt on their credit scores, and give a second chance to borrowers struggling with private student loan debt.

“Too often consumers are unfairly penalized by negative credit reporting because of abusive lending practices, pervasive inaccuracies, and harsh reporting practices. The consequences include exclusion from the mainstream credit system, barriers to employment or housing, and being charged higher prices  for credit or goods, along with the time and effort lost in trying to correct errors. This legislation would improve the credit reporting system and, as a result, increase economic security for millions of families. We urge the Senate to take up this issue and pass the Comprehensive CREDIT Act so that all Americans can benefit from the credit reporting reforms in this legislation.” said Linda Jun, senior policy counsel at Americans for Financial Reform.