Consumers also expressed frustration that, even 
though they provided supporting materials that 
they believed demonstrated the inaccuracy of 
the information provided by furnishers, errors 
continued to remain on their reports. 
(F) In the winter 2015 ‘‘Supervisory High-
lights’’ released in March 2015, the Consumer 
Bureau reported that one or more nationwide 
CRAs failed to adequately fulfill their dispute- 
handling obligations, including by not for-
warding to furnishers all relevant information 
found in letters and supporting documents sup-
plied by consumers when they submitted dis-
putes failing to notify consumers that they had 
completed investigations, and not providing con-
sumers with the results of the CRAs’ reviews 
about their disputes. 
(G) Consumer Bureau examiners also 
noted in the fall 2016 ‘‘Supervisory Highlights’’ 
released in October 2016 that one or more enti-
ties failed to provide adequate guidance and 
training to staff about how to differentiate 
FCRA disputes from general customer inquir-
ies, complaints, or debt validation requests. 
Consumer Bureau supervisors also directed one 
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or more entities to develop and implement rea-
sonable procedures to ensure that direct and in-
direct disputes are appropriately logged, cat-
egorized, and resolved. 
(H) Consumers’ increasing frustration 
about the difficulties of trying to fix credit re-
porting errors, evidenced through the volume of 
consumer complaints related to errors sub-
mitted to the Consumer Bureau, are also 
echoed in another FTC study issued in January 
2015. In the ‘‘Report to Congress under Sec-
tion 319 for the Fair and Accurate Credit 
Transactions Act of 2003’’, the FTC found that 
nearly 70 percent (84 people) of participants 
from a previous survey that had filed disputes 
with CRAs continued to believe that at least 
some of the disputed information remained in-
accurate at the time of the follow-up survey. 
Despite these views, 50 percent (42 people) of 
the survey participants decided to just give up 
trying to fix the errors, with only 45 percent 
(38 people) of them planning to continue to try 
to resolve their disputes. 
(I) The consistently high volume of con-
sumer complaints submitted to the Consumer 
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Bureau about credit reporting errors, coupled 
with the largest CRAs’ repeated quality control 
weaknesses found by Consumer Bureau exam-
iners, show that the nationwide CRAs have 
failed to establish and follow reasonable proce-
dures to assure maximum accuracy of informa-
tion and to conduct independent investigations 
of consumers’ disputes. These ongoing problems 
demonstrate the need for legislation to— 
(i) enhance obligations on furnishers 
to substantiate information and require 
furnishers to keep records for the same 
amount of time that adverse information 
about these accounts may appear on a per-
son’s consumer report; 
(ii) eliminate CRAs’ discretion to de-
termine the relevancy of materials provided 
by consumers to support their dispute 
claims by instead requiring them to pass 
all material onto furnishers and elimi-
nating CRA’s discretion to deem some dis-
putes frivolous or irrelevant when a con-
sumer resubmits a claim that they believe 
has been inadequately resolved; 
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(iii) enhance educational content on 
CRAs’ websites to improve consumers’ un-
derstanding of the dispute process and to 
make it easier for all consumers to initiate 
claims, including by providing these disclo-
sures in other languages besides English; 
and 
(iv) create a new consumer right to 
appeal reviews by CRAs and furnishers of 
the initial disputes. 
(3) INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.— 
(A) Despite the fact that the FCRA cur-
rently provides implicit authority for injunctive 
relief, consumers have been prevented from ex-
ercising this right. Legislation explicitly clari-
fying this right is intended to underscore con-
gressional intent that injunctive relief should be 
viewed as a remedy available to consumers. 
(B) Myriad findings by the courts, regu-
lators, consumers, and consumer advocates 
make clear that CRAs have failed to establish 
adequate standards for the accuracy and com-
pleteness of consumer reports, yet the nation-
wide CRAs have demonstrated little willingness 
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to voluntarily retool their policies and proce-
dures to fix the problems. 
(C) Providing courts with explicit authority 
to issue injunctive relief, by telling the CRAs to 
remedy unlawful practices and procedures, 
would further CRAs’ mandate under the FCRA 
to assure the maximum possible accuracy and 
completeness of information contained on credit 
reports. 
(D) Absent explicit authority to issue in-
junctions, history suggests that the nationwide 
CRAs are likely to continue conducting business 
as usual in treating any monetary settlements 
with individual consumers and fines imposed by 
State attorneys general and Federal regulators, 
simply as the ‘‘cost of doing business’’. 
(4) DECEPTIVE AND MISLEADING MARKETING 
PRACTICES.— 
(A) The Consumer Bureau’s February 
2015 report titled ‘‘Consumer Voices on Credit 
Reports and Scores’’ found that some con-
sumers did not obtain a copy of their consumer 
report due to concerns about security or of 
being trapped into purchasing unwanted prod-
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ucts like an additional report or a credit moni-
toring service. 
(B) In January 2017, the Consumer Bu-
reau fined TransUnion and Equifax for decep-
tively marketing credit scores for purchase by 
consumers as the same credit scores typically 
used by lenders to determine creditworthiness 
and for luring consumers into costly subscrip-
tion services that were advertised as ‘‘free’’ or 
‘‘$1’’ that automatically charged recurring fees 
unless cancelled by consumers. The Consumer 
Bureau also found that Equifax was illegally 
advertising its products on webpages that con-
sumers 
accessed 
through 
AnnualCreditReport.com before consumers ob-
tained their free disclosures. Because of these 
troubling practices, TransUnion was ordered to 
pay $13.9 million in restitution to harmed con-
sumers and a civil penalty of $3 million to the 
Consumer Bureau. Equifax was ordered to pay 
more than $3.7 million to affected consumers 
as well as a civil money penalty of $2.5 million 
to the Consumer Bureau. As part of the con-
sent orders, the CRAs are also supposed to 
change the way that they sell their products to 
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consumers. The CRAs must also obtain con-
sumers’ express consent before enrolling them 
into subscription services as well as make it 
easer for consumers to cancel these programs. 
(C) The Consumer Bureau fined the other 
nationwide CRA—Experian—in March 2017 
for deceiving consumers about the use of credit 
scores that it marketed and sold to consumers 
as credit scores that were used by lenders and 
for illegally advertising its products on web 
pages 
that 
consumers 
accessed 
through 
AnnualCreditReport.com before they obtained 
their free annual disclosures. Experian was or-
dered to pay more than $3.7 million in restitu-
tion to harmed consumers and a civil monetary 
penalty of $2.5 million to the Consumer Bu-
reau. 
(D) The Consumer Bureau’s January and 
March 2017 consent orders with the three na-
tionwide CRAs show that these CRAs have en-
ticed consumers into purchasing products and 
services that they may not want or need, in 
some instances by advertising products or serv-
ices ‘‘free’’ that automatically converted into an 
ongoing subscription service at the regular price 
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unless cancelled by the consumer. Although 
these CRAs must now change their deceptive 
marketing practices, codifying these duties is an 
appropriate way to ensure that these companies 
never revert back to such misleading tactics. 
(E) Given the ubiquitous use of consumer 
reports in consumers’ lives and the fact that 
consumers’ participation in the credit reporting 
system is involuntary, CRAs should also 
prioritize providing consumers with the effective 
means to safeguard their personal and financial 
information and improve their credit standing, 
rather than seeking to exploit consumers’ con-
cerns and confusion about credit reporting and 
scoring, to boost their companies’ profits. 
(F) Vulnerable consumers, who have legiti-
mate concerns about the security of their per-
sonal and financial information, deserve clear, 
accurate, and transparent information about 
the credit reporting tools that may be available 
to them, such as fraud alerts and freezes. 
SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
The amendments made by this Act shall take effect 
2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
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SEC. 4. CONSUMER BUREAU RULEMAKING. 
Except as otherwise provided, not later than the end 
of the 2-year period beginning on the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Pro-
tection shall issue final rules to implement the amend-
ments made by this Act. 
TITLE I—IMPROVEMENTS TO 
THE DISPUTE PROCESS 
SEC. 101. DISPUTE PROCEDURES AND DISCLOSURES RE-
LATING TO REINVESTIGATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 611(a) of the Fair Credit 
Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681i(a)) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(a) REINVESTIGATIONS
OF DISPUTED INFORMA-
TION BY A CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCY.— 
‘‘(1) REINVESTIGATIONS REQUIRED.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection 
(f), if the completeness or accuracy of any item 
of information contained in a consumer’s file at 
a consumer reporting agency is disputed by the 
consumer and the consumer notifies the agency 
(either directly or indirectly through a reseller 
or an authorized third party) of such dispute, 
the agency shall, free of charge— 
‘‘(i) conduct a reasonable reinvestiga-
tion using the process described in para-
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graph (3) to determine whether the dis-
puted information is inaccurate, incom-
plete, or cannot be verified; 
‘‘(ii) notify the consumer that a nota-
tion described in section 605(e) will be 
added to the consumer’s file until the re-
investigation has been completed and that 
such notation can be removed at the re-
quest of the consumer; and 
‘‘(iii) before the end of the 30-day pe-
riod beginning on the date on which the 
consumer reporting agency receives the no-
tice of the dispute from the consumer or 
the reseller— 
‘‘(I) record the current status of 
the disputed information; or 
‘‘(II) delete or modify the item in 
accordance with paragraph (3)(D). 
‘‘(B) EXTENSION OF PERIOD TO REINVES-
TIGATE.—Except as provided in subparagraph 
(C), the 30-day period described in subpara-
graph (A) may be extended for period not to ex-
ceed 15 days if the consumer reporting agency 
receives additional information from the con-
sumer or the reseller regarding the dispute 
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after the date on which the consumer reporting 
agency notified any person who provided any 
item of information in dispute under paragraph 
(2)(A). 
‘‘(C) LIMITATIONS ON EXTENSION OF PE-
RIOD TO REINVESTIGATE.—Subparagraph (B) 
shall not apply to any reinvestigation in which, 
during the 30-day period described in subpara-
graph (A), the disputed information is found to 
be inaccurate or incomplete, or the consumer 
reporting agency determines that the disputed 
information cannot be verified. 
‘‘(2) PROMPT
NOTICE
OF
DISPUTE
TO
FUR-
NISHER OF INFORMATION; PROVISION OF INFORMA-
TION REGARDING DISPUTE PROVIDED BY THE CON-
SUMER OR RESELLER.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Before the end of the 
period of 5 business days beginning on the date 
on which a consumer reporting agency receives 
notice of a dispute from any consumer or re-
seller under paragraph (1)(A), the consumer re-
porting agency shall provide notification of the 
dispute to any person who provided any item of 
information in dispute, at the address and in 
the manner established with such person. The 
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notice shall include all information, including 
substantiating documents, regarding the dispute 
that was submitted to the consumer reporting 
agency. 
‘‘(B) PROVISION OF ADDITIONAL INFORMA-
TION
REGARDING
DISPUTE
AFTER
NOTIFICA-
TION TO THE FURNISHER OF INFORMATION.— 
If a consumer reporting agency receives addi-
tional information regarding the dispute from 
the consumer or reseller after the agency pro-
vides the notification described under subpara-
graph (A) and before the end of the 30-day pe-
riod described in paragraph (1)(A), the con-
sumer reporting agency shall, not later than 3 
business days after receiving such information, 
provide such information to the person who pro-
vided the information in dispute. 
‘‘(3) REASONABLE STANDARDS FOR CONSUMER 
REPORTING AGENCIES FOR CONDUCTING REINVES-
TIGATIONS AND RESOLVING DISPUTES SUBMITTED 
BY CONSUMERS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In conducting a re-
investigation of disputed information, a con-
sumer reporting agency shall, at a minimum— 
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‘‘(i) maintain sufficient resources and 
trained staff, commensurate with the vol-
ume and complexity of disputes received or 
reasonably anticipated to be received, to 
determine whether the disputed informa-
tion is accurate, complete, or can be 
verified by the person who provided the in-
formation; 
‘‘(ii) ensure that all staff involved at 
any level of the reinvestigation process, in-
cluding any individual with ultimate au-
thority over determining whether the dis-
puted information is inaccurate, incom-
plete, or cannot be verified, are located 
within the United States; 
‘‘(iii) verify that the personally identi-
fiable information of the consumer submit-
ting the dispute matches the personally 
identifiable information contained in the 
consumer’s file, and that such information 
is accurate and complete; 
‘‘(iv) verify that the consumer report-
ing agency has a record of the information 
being disputed; and 
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‘‘(v) conduct a reasonable review that 
considers all information, including sub-
stantiating documents, provided by the 
consumer or reseller. 
‘‘(B) CONSUMER
REPORTING.—The con-
sumer reporting agency shall not impose any 
limitation or otherwise impede the ability of a 
consumer to submit information about the dis-
puted item. 
‘‘(C) INDEPENDENT
ANALYSIS.—The re-
investigation conducted under subparagraph 
(A) shall be an independent analysis, separate 
from any investigation by a reseller or a person 
who provided the disputed information. 
‘‘(D) DELETION OR MODIFICATION OF IN-
FORMATION
CONTAINED
IN
A
CONSUMER 
FILE.—If the disputed information is found to 
be inaccurate, incomplete, or cannot be verified, 
the dispute resolution staff of the consumer re-
porting agency shall have the direct authority to 
delete or modify such information in the con-
sumer’s file, as appropriate, during the 30-day 
period described in paragraph (1)(A), shall 
promptly notify the consumer of the results of 
the reinvestigation as described in paragraph 
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(4), and shall promptly notify any person who 
provided such information to the consumer re-
porting agency of the modification or deletion 
made to the consumer’s file. 
‘‘(4) NOTICE TO CONSUMER OF RESULTS OF 
REINVESTIGATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 busi-
ness days after the conclusion of a reinvestiga-
tion conducted under this subsection, the con-
sumer reporting agency shall provide written 
notice to the consumer of the results of the re-
investigation by postal mail or, if authorized by 
the consumer for that purpose, by other means 
available to the agency. 
‘‘(B) CONTENTS OF NOTICE TO CONSUMER 
OF RESULTS OF REINVESTIGATION.—The notice 
described in subparagraph (A) shall include— 
‘‘(i) a statement that the reinvestiga-
tion of the disputed information has been 
completed; 
‘‘(ii) a statement informing the con-
sumer as to whether the disputed informa-
tion was determined to be inaccurate, in-
complete, or unverifiable, including a state-
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ment of the specific reasons supporting the 
determination; 
‘‘(iii) if information in the consumer’s 
file has been deleted or modified as a re-
sult of the reinvestigation— 
‘‘(I) a copy of the consumer re-
port and credit score or educational 
score (if applicable) that is based 
upon the consumer’s revised file; 
‘‘(II) a statement identifying the 
specific information from the con-
sumer’s file that was deleted or modi-
fied because such information was de-
termined to be inaccurate, incomplete, 
or unverifiable by the consumer re-
porting agency; 
‘‘(III) a statement that the con-
sumer has the right, free of charge, to 
obtain an additional consumer report 
and credit score or educational credit 
score (if applicable) within the 12- 
month period following the date of the 
conclusion of the reinvestigation, re-
gardless of whether the consumer ob-
tained or will obtain a free annual 
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‘‘(5) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO REINSER-
TION OF PREVIOUSLY DELETED OR MODIFIED MATE-
RIAL.— 
‘‘(A) CERTIFICATION OF NEW DETERMINA-
TION
THAT
ITEM
IS
ACCURATE
OR
COM-
PLETE.—A consumer reporting agency may not 
reinsert into a consumer’s file any information 
that was previously deleted or modified pursu-
ant to paragraph (3)(D), unless the person who 
provided the information— 
‘‘(i) requests that the consumer re-
porting agency reinsert such information; 
‘‘(ii) submits a written certification 
that the information is accurate and com-
plete; and 
‘‘(iii) provides a statement describing 
the specific reasons why the information 
should be inserted. 
‘‘(B) NOTICE TO CONSUMER BEFORE RE-
INSERTION CAN OCCUR.—Upon receipt of a re-
quest for reinsertion of disputed information 
under subparagraph (A), the consumer report-
ing agency shall, not later than 5 business days 
before the consumer reporting agency reinserts 
the information into the consumer’s file, notify 
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the consumer in writing of such request for re-
insertion. Such notice shall include— 
‘‘(i) the business name, mailing ad-
dress, telephone number, and Internet 
website address (if available) of any person 
who provided information to or contacted 
the consumer reporting agency in connec-
tion with the reinsertion; 
‘‘(ii) a copy of the information relat-
ing to the consumer, the certification that 
the information is accurate or complete, 
and the statement of the reasons sup-
porting reinsertion provided by the person 
who provided the information to the con-
sumer reporting agency under subpara-
graph (A); 
‘‘(iii) a statement that the consumer 
may obtain, free of charge and within the 
12-month period following the date the no-
tice under this subparagraph was issued, a 
consumer report and credit score or edu-
cational score (if applicable) from the con-
sumer reporting agency that includes the 
reinserted 
information, 
regardless 
of 
whether the consumer obtained or will ob-
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tain a free annual consumer report and 
credit score or educational credit score (if 
applicable) under section 612; 
‘‘(iv) a statement that the consumer 
may appeal the determination that the pre-
viously deleted or modified information is 
accurate or complete and a description of 
the procedure for the consumer to make 
such an appeal pursuant to subsection (h); 
and 
‘‘(v) a statement that the consumer 
has the right to add a narrative statement, 
free of charge, to the consumer’s file dis-
puting the accuracy or completeness of the 
disputed information and a description of 
the process to add such a narrative state-
ment pursuant to subsection (b). 
‘‘(6) EXPEDITED DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—If a 
consumer reporting agency determines that the in-
formation provided by the consumer is sufficient to 
substantiate that the item of information is inac-
curate, incomplete, or cannot be verified by the per-
son who furnished such information, and the con-
sumer reporting agency deletes or modifies such in-
formation within 3 business days of receiving notice 
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of the dispute, the consumer reporting agency shall 
be exempt from the requirements of paragraph (4), 
if the consumer reporting agency provides to the 
consumer— 
‘‘(A) prompt notice confirming the deletion 
or modification of the information from the con-
sumer’s file in writing or by other means, if 
agreed to by the consumer when the informa-
tion is disputed; 
‘‘(B) a statement of the consumer’s right 
to request that the consumer reporting agency 
furnish notifications of a revised consumer re-
port pursuant to subsection (d); 
‘‘(C) not later than 5 business days after 
deleting or modifying the information, a copy of 
the consumer report and credit score or edu-
cational score (if applicable) that is based upon 
the consumer’s revised file; and 
‘‘(D) a statement that the consumer may 
obtain, free of charge and within the 12-month 
period following the date the notice under this 
paragraph was sent to the consumer, a con-
sumer report and credit score or educational 
score (if applicable) from the consumer report-
ing agency, regardless of whether the consumer 
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obtained or will obtain their free annual con-
sumer report and credit score or educational 
score (if applicable) under section 612. 
‘‘(7) NO EXCUSE FOR FAILURE TO CONDUCT 
REINVESTIGATION.—A consumer reporting agency 
may not refuse to conduct a reinvestigation under 
this subsection because the agency determines that 
the dispute was submitted by an authorized third 
party, unless the agency has clear and convincing 
evidence that the third party is not authorized to 
submit the dispute on the consumer’s behalf. If the 
consumer reporting agency refuses to reinvestigate a 
dispute for these reasons, it shall provide a clear and 
conspicuous notice to the consumer explaining the 
reasons for the refusal and describing the specific in-
formation the consumer is required to provide for 
the agency to conduct the reinvestigation.’’. 
(b) ENSURING CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCIES 
FURNISH CERTAIN NOTIFICATIONS WITHOUT CHARGE.— 
Section 611(d) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 
U.S.C. 1681i(d)) is amended by inserting ‘‘and without 
charge’’ after ‘‘request of the consumer’’. 
(c) INCLUDING SPECIALTY CONSUMER REPORTING 
AGENCIES IN REPORTS.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 611(e) of the Fair 
Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681i(e)) is 
amended by inserting ‘‘or 603(x)’’ after ‘‘section 
603(p)’’ each place such term appears. 
(2) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (1) 
of such section (15 U.S.C. 1681i(e)(1)) is amended 
by striking ‘‘The Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘The 
Bureau’’. 
(d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Such Act is fur-
ther amended— 
(1) in section 605B(c)(2), by striking ‘‘section 
611(a)(5)(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 611(a)(5)’’; 
(2) in section 611— 
(A) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘unless 
there is reasonable grounds to believe that it is 
frivolous or irrevelant,’’; and 
(B) in subsection (f)(3)— 
(i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 
‘‘paragraph (6), (7), or (8) of subsection 
(a)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (4) or (5) of 
subsection (a)’’; and 
(ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
‘‘in the manner required under paragraph 
(8)(A)’’; and 
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‘‘(II) describe the types of activi-
ties that constitute negative informa-
tion; 
‘‘(III) inform the consumer that 
the person may report negative infor-
mation relating to any such accounts 
or transactions to a consumer report-
ing agency described in subsection (p) 
or (x) of section 603; 
‘‘(IV) state that the negative in-
formation may appear on a consumer 
report of the consumer for the periods 
described in section 605 and that dur-
ing such periods, the negative infor-
mation may adversely impact the con-
sumer’s credit score; 
‘‘(V) state that in some limited 
circumstances, the negative informa-
tion may result in other adverse ac-
tions, including a denial of a new job 
or a promotion from existing employ-
ment; and 
‘‘(VI) state that the consumer 
has right to— 
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tion under that section, complete an inves-
tigation of the disputed information pursu-
ant to the standards described in subpara-
graph (G); 
‘‘(iv) notify the consumer, in writing, 
of the receipt of the dispute that in-
cludes— 
‘‘(I) a statement about any infor-
mation additional to the information 
that the person is required to main-
tain under subsection (f) that would 
support the person’s ability to carry 
out an investigation to resolve the 
consumer’s dispute; and 
‘‘(II) a statement that the con-
sumer reporting agency to which the 
disputed information was provided will 
include a notation described in section 
605(e) in the consumer’s file until the 
investigation has been completed, and 
information about how a consumer 
may request that such notation is re-
moved by the agency; 
‘‘(v) if the investigation determines 
the disputed information is inaccurate, in-
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