December 5, 2003

Fair Credit Reporting Act

President Bush signed into law a bipartisan measure to update the Fair Credit Reporting Act with stronger federal protections against identity theft and a permanent extension of provisions that pre-empt many state consumer protection laws. Bill supporters said those pre-emptions will provide "uniform national standards" for consumer protections against identity theft and maintain efficiency within the credit reporting system. Without those standards, "retailers and the customers we serve could have been subject to a confusing patchwork of new state laws, rules and regulations," Tracy Mullin, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation, said today. But critics said states should have the right to enact stronger consumer protections than those provided under federal law. "Finally, consumers nationwide have gained important new rights to fight identity theft and clean up credit bureau mistakes, but at the unacceptably high price of unfair, permanent limits on state rights," said Ed Mierzwinski, consumer program director of the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.

Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act

President Bush signed into law H.R. 2622, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act. The bill is designed to give consumers new tools to fight identity theft and continued access to the most dynamic credit markets in the world.

Included in the legislation are provisions entitling consumers to one free credit report per year and access to their credit score. The legislation also creates a national fraud alert system to simplify consumers' ability to report fraudulent activity, and enacts a host of common sense protections for consumers' personal information.

"This is the most significant consumer protection and financial literacy legislation passed by Congress in decades," said House Financial Services Committee Chairman Mike Oxley (R-OH). "With a free credit report and powerful new tools to fight fraud, consumers have the ability make identity theft a crime of the past. This legislation is a tribute to the legislative process and the bipartisanship of this Congress."

NACM Government Affairs Updates
November 2003

November 24, 2003

House and Senate conferees signed a final agreement today on legislation to update the Fair Credit Reporting Act with stronger federal provisions to combat identity theft and permanently extend expiring FCRA provisions that pre-empt many state consumer protection laws. Financial Services Chairman Oxley said the House could vote on the conference report as early as today. Senate Banking Chairman Shelby said he planned to consult with Majority Leader Frist to schedule a Senate vote on the measure as soon as possible. Bill sponsors, backed by the financial services industry, have said the bill's permanent state law pre-emption would help provide a "uniform national standard" for consumer protections. But Reps. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., and Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., voted against the conference report, arguing that states should have the right to enact stronger consumer protections than those provided under federal law.

Oxley said the final agreement includes language to clarify that the bill would pre-empt any state consumer protection laws—including many California statutes—that have a similar intent as the bill's identity theft provisions. The House also agreed to a Senate provision requiring companies that share customer information with affiliates to provide consumers with an opportunity to "opt out" of receiving marketing calls or mail from those companies. But Oxley said the House insisted on "some carve-outs and exceptions" to the affiliate-marketing provisions in addition to those provided in the Senate bill.