They say things have a tendency to move slowly in the government, but the legislation regarding credit card companies seems to have moved along pretty quickly. It seems it was only a couple of weeks ago when I was reporting on this blog that many politicians were starting to take a closer look at credit card legislation directed at industry policies and procedures. Today, I found out that House Democrats have introduced the new legislation today.
In addition, the legislation requires the credit card issue to provide a clear outline of the time it will take to pay the balance off completely if they only pay the minimum payment every month. Credit card issuers will also be required to warn their consumers about the long term costs of interest rates.
Another component of the legislation will require credit card issuers to provide their customers with a toll-free telephone number they can call in order to receive credit counseling.
This legislation comes hot on the tail of a hearing that took place just last week. At this hearing, which took place before the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, representatives discussed what was referred to as the “predatory practices” of credit card companies. The committee maintained that charging interest and fees on money that has been repaid is an unfair practice. Executives from Bank of America Credit Card Services, JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Chase Bank USA, and Citigroup‘s Citi Cards were all present at the hearing in order to plead their cases.
North Carolina Democratic Rep. David Price was unimpressed by the credit card executive’s promises to be provide clearer information to their customers. As such, he and eight of his colleagues introduced the bill today. Price reiterated the importance of the legislation by saying, “Consumers deserve to have better information from credit card companies to get themselves out of debt.”
Personally, I am glad to see that the government is taking an interest in keeping consumer protected from unfair practices on the part of the credit card company. At the same time, there comes a point when consumers need to take responsibility for their own actions and deal with the consequences of the choices they make.
Related Posts:
- New Credit Card Bill Could Bring Welcome Changes - Democratic representative from New York, Carolyn Maloney, has introduced new legislation that could have a major impact on the credit card industry....
- California Introduces New Credit Card Bill for Students - It seems that lawmakers aren’t done yet with making the lives of credit card company executives miserable. A new bill has been...
- Can Your Mobile Phone Bill Be Used As A Credit Card? - It started with texts as a donation method. Now the practice of using a mobile phone as a type of credit device...
- Know Your Rights When It Comes to Bill Collectors - I am a big believer in that consumers must take responsibility for their actions. In other words, I find it hard to...