Protecting Consumer Access to Credit Act
Bill: H.R.1645 | Sponsor: Rep. McHenry, Patrick T. (R-NC)
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector

Summary:
Protecting Consumer Access to Credit Act
This bill revises requirements related to credit reporting agencies and the reporting of adverse credit information.
Credit reporting agencies are prohibited from using social security numbers in credit reports and as a method of verifying a consumer's identity.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau must supervise and examine the cybersecurity of certain credit reporting agencies.
The bill prohibits a credit reporting agency from reporting paid, medically-necessary debt if the debt was paid over a year prior. A credit reporting agency is also prohibited from reporting certain adverse credit information related to financial abuse, unfair or fraudulent mortgage lending, or fraudulent private student lending.
The bill extends the time credit reporting agencies have to place a credit security freeze when receiving such a request by phone or through electronic means from one to three business days. It also extends the time agencies have to remove a freeze from one hour to three days.

To amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act to make improvements to the 
 regulation of consumer reporting agencies and protect consumers, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Consumer Access to Credit 
Act''.

SEC. 2. CYBERSECURITY SUPERVISION AND EXAMINATION OF LARGE CONSUMER 
              REPORTING AGENCIES.

    (a) In General.--The Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681 et 
seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 630. CYBERSECURITY SUPERVISION AND EXAMINATION OF LARGE CONSUMER 
              REPORTING AGENCIES.

    ``Consumer reporting agencies described under section 603(p) shall 
be subject to cybersecurity supervision and examination by the 
Bureau.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents of the Fair Credit 
Reporting Act is amended by adding at the end the following:

``630. Cybersecurity supervision and examination of large consumer 
                            reporting agencies.''.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON THE USE OF SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS.

    (a) In General.--Section 605 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 
U.S.C. 1681c) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(i) Prohibition on the Use of Social Security Numbers.--A 
consumer reporting agency described under section 603(p)--
            ``(1) may not make any consumer report containing a social 
        security number; and
            ``(2) may not use the social security number of a consumer 
        as a method to verify the consumer.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 609(a)(1) of the Fair Credit 
Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681g(a)(1)) is amended by striking ``except 
that--'' and all that follows through ``(B) nothing'' and inserting 
``except that nothing''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on January 1, 2022.

SEC. 4. EXCLUSION OF PAID MEDICAL DEBT.

    Section 605(a) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 
1681c(a)) is amended, by adding at the end the following:
            ``(9) Paid debt arising from the receipt of medically 
        necessary, non-elective medical services, products, or devices 
        which from the date of payment, antedate the report by more 
        than 1 year.''.

SEC. 5. SECURITY FREEZES FOR PROTECTED CONSUMERS.

    (a) Placement of Freeze.--Section 605A(j)(2)(A) of the Fair Credit 
Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c-1(j)(2)(A)) is amended to read as 
follows:
                    ``(A) In general.--Upon receiving a direct request 
                from a protected consumer's representative, by mail, 
                toll-free telephone, or secure electronic means, that a 
                consumer reporting agency place a security freeze, and 
                upon receiving sufficient proof of identification and 
                sufficient proof of authority, the consumer reporting 
                agency shall, free of charge, place the security freeze 
                not later than 3 business days after receiving the 
                request directly from the protected consumer's 
                representative.''.
    (b) Removal of Freeze.--Section 605A(j)(4) of the Fair Credit 
Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c-1(j)(4)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A)(i), by inserting after ``Upon the 
        direct request'' the following: ``, by mail or secure 
        electronic means,'';
            (2) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by inserting after ``Upon the 
        direct request'' the following: ``, by mail or secure 
        electronic means,''; and
            (3) in subparagraph (C)--
                    (A) by striking ``not later than--'' and inserting 
                the ``not later than 3 days business days after 
                receiving the request directly from the protected 
                consumer or protected consumer's representative.''; and
                    (B) by striking clauses (i) and (ii).

SEC. 6. PUBLIC RECORD DATA SOURCES IN CONSUMER REPORTS.

    Section 605(d) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 
1681c(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) Public record data.--If a consumer reporting agency 
        furnishes a consumer report that contains public record data, 
        such consumer reporting agency shall include the source of such 
        public record data in such report.''.

SEC. 7. PROHIBITION ON INCLUDING ADVERSE INFORMATION RELATED TO 
              PREDATORY MORTGAGE LENDING.

    (a) In General.--The Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681 et 
seq.) is amended by inserting after section 605B the following:
``Sec. 605C. Adverse information relating to predatory mortgage lending
    ``(a) In General.--A consumer reporting agency may not furnish any 
consumer report containing any adverse item of information relating to 
a covered residential mortgage loan (including the origination and 
servicing of such a loan, any loss mitigation activities related to 
such a loan, and any foreclosure, deed in lieu of foreclosure, or short 
sale related to such a loan), if the action or inaction to which the 
item of information relates--
            ``(1) resulted from an unfair, deceptive, or abusive act or 
        practice, or a fraudulent, discriminatory, or illegal activity 
        of a financial institution, as determined by a court of 
        competent jurisdiction; or
            ``(2) is related to an unfair, deceptive, or abusive act or 
        practice, or a fraudulent, discriminatory, or illegal activity 
        of a financial institution that is the subject of a settlement 
        agreement initiated on behalf of a consumer and that is between 
        the financial institution and an agency or department of a 
        local, State, or Federal Government.
    ``(b) Covered Residential Mortgage.--In this section, the term 
`covered residential mortgage loan' means any loan made primarily for 
personal, family, or household use that is secured by a mortgage, deed 
of trust, or other equivalent consensual security interest on a 
dwelling (as defined in section 103(w) of the Truth in Lending Act), 
including a loan in which the proceeds will be used for--
            ``(1) a manufactured home (as defined in section 603 of the 
        Housing and Community Development Act of 1974);
            ``(2) any installment sales contract, land contract, or 
        contract for deed on a residential property; or
            ``(3) a reverse mortgage transaction (as defined in section 
        103(cc) of the Truth in Lending Act).''.
    (b) Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents of the Fair 
Credit Reporting Act is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
section 605B the following new item:

``605C. Adverse information relating to predatory mortgage lending.''.

SEC. 8. PROHIBITION ON INCLUDING ADVERSE INFORMATION WHEN FINANCIAL 
              ABUSE HAS BEEN DETERMINED.

    (a) In General.--The Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681 et 
seq.), as amended by section 7, is further amended by inserting after 
section 605C the following:
``Sec. 605D. Adverse information in cases of financial abuse
    ``A consumer reporting agency may not furnish a consumer report 
containing any adverse item of information about a consumer that 
resulted from intentionally abusive or harmful financial behavior if--
            ``(1) a court of competent jurisdiction, in a lawsuit that 
        is not a class action lawsuit, has determined that the consumer 
        is a victim of such intentionally abusive or harmful financial 
        behavior;
            ``(2) such intentionally abusive or harmful financial 
        behavior was conducted by a spouse, family or household member, 
        caregiver, or person with whom such consumer had a dating 
        relationship; and
            ``(3) such consumer did not participate in or consent to 
        such behavior.''.
    (b) Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents of the Fair 
Credit Reporting Act is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
section 605C the following new item:

``605D. Adverse information in cases of financial abuse.''.

SEC. 9. PROHIBITION ON INCLUDING ADVERSE INFORMATION WHEN A STUDENT 
              OBLIGOR IS DEFRAUDED.

    (a) In General.--The Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681 et 
seq.), as amended by section 8, is further amended by inserting after 
section 605D the following:
``Sec. 605E. Adverse information in cases of a defrauded student 
              obligor.
    ``(a) In General.--A consumer reporting agency may not furnish a 
consumer report containing any adverse item of information about a 
consumer that resulted from a private student loan obligation if--
            ``(1) such consumer is a student obligor with respect to 
        such private education loan; and
            ``(2) a court of competent jurisdiction, in a lawsuit that 
        is not a class action lawsuit, has determined that such 
        consumer is a victim of fraud with respect to such private 
        education loan.
    ``(b) Private Education Loan Defined.--For the purposes of this 
section, the term `private education loan' has the meaning given the 
term in section 140(a) of the Truth in Lending Act.''.
    (b) Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents of the Fair 
Credit Reporting Act is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
section 605D the following new item:

``605E. Adverse information in cases of a defrauded student obligor.''.

SEC. 10. BUREAU LIST OF CREDIT REPORTING AGENCIES.

    The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall maintain a list 
of credit reporting agencies in the United States and publish such list 
of the website on the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

SEC. 11. STUDY AND REPORT TO CONGRESS ON USE OF NON-TRADITIONAL DATA IN 
              CREDIT SCORING.

    (a) Study.--The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall carry 
out a study about the use of non-traditional data--
            (1) by consumer reporting agencies when compiling and 
        furnishing consumer reports; and
            (2) by persons that create, maintain, or purchase credit 
        scoring models used in making credit decisions.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 18 months after the date of the 
enactment of this section, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection 
shall issue a report to the Committee on Financial Services of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 
Urban Affairs of the Senate containing all findings and determinations, 
including any recommendations for any legislative or regulatory 
changes, made in carrying out the study required under subsection (a).
    (c) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section, the terms 
``consumer reporting agency'' and ``consumer report'' shall have the 
meanings given the terms in section 603 of the Fair Credit Reporting 
Act.
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