The House Financial Services Committee today advanced legislation that would align Fair Credit Reporting Act liability with other financial consumer protection laws, reform the Securities and Exchange Commission and give banks more time to verify suspicious checks. The three bills were supported by the American Bankers Association.
The committee met today to consider 10 bills along with several proposed amendments. In comments submitted ahead of the hearing, ABA expressed support for the following:
- The FCRA Liability Harmonization Act (H.R. 5775), sponsored by Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.), would harmonize the Fair Credit Reporting Act with other financial consumer protection laws by capping statutory damages in class action lawsuits, eliminating punitive damages and limiting attorney’s fees. “These reforms would curb abusive litigation practices while preserving strong consumer protections and an effective dispute resolution process,” ABA said. The committee voted 27-23 to advance the bill.
- The SEC Reform and Restructuring Act (H.R. 9329), sponsored by Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Mo.), would implement a series of reforms to improve SEC rulemaking, transparency and oversight. ABA identified several provisions in the bill that would improve the effectiveness of the commission, including requiring the SEC to consider a series of specified factors such as a cost-benefit analysis and the cumulative effect of regulations before issuing rules. The committee voted 28-23 to advance the bill.
- The Strengthening Transaction Oversight Preventing (STOP) Payments Fraud Act (H.R. 9331), sponsored by Rep. Young Kim (R-Calif.), would amend the Expedited Funds Availability Act to allow regulators to remove the requirement for next-day availability of Treasury and cashiers’ checks. “Providing banks of all sizes additional time to verify these checks would help prevent fraud and protect consumers from significant losses,” ABA said. The bill advanced with unanimous support.
