FCRA Liability Harmonization Act

Bill: 115-hr-2359
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Loudermilk, Barry [R-GA-11]
Introduced: 2017-05-04
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Civil actions and liability

Consumer credit
Latest action: action_date: 2017-09-07
text: Hearings Held by the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Prior to Referral.

Summaries:
action_date: 2017-05-04
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>FCRA Liability Harmonization Act</b></p> <p>This bill amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to limit the recovery amount available in a class action lawsuit to the lesser of $500,000 or 1% of the net worth of the defendant. The bill also eliminates the awarding of punitive damages.</p>

tv_txt: I 115th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 2359 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 4, 2017 Mr. Loudermilk (for himself, Mr. Royce of California , Mr. Budd , Mr. King of New York , and Mrs. Wagner ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services , and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To amend the civil liability requirements under the Fair Credit Reporting Act to include requirements relating to class actions, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the FCRA Liability Harmonization Act . 2. Maintaining consistency in civil liability under the Fair Credit Reporting Act for class actions (a) Willful noncompliance Section 616 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( 15 U.S.C. 1681n ) is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) by striking paragraph (2); (B) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (2); and (C) in paragraph (1)(B), by inserting and after the semicolon; (2) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (e); and (3) by inserting after subsection (c) the following new subsection: (d) Class action lawsuits With respect to a class action (as such term is defined in section 1711 of title 28, United States Code), or series of class actions arising out of the same failure to comply of a person, brought by consumers against a person who willfully fails to comply with any requirement imposed under this title, such person is liable to such consumers in such an amount as a court may determine, except that— (1) the court may not apply a minimum amount of damages for each member of the class; and (2) the total recovery (excluding reasonable attorney’s fees as determined by the court) of the class shall not exceed the lesser of— (A) $500,000; or (B) 1 percent of the net worth of such person. . (b) Negligent noncompliance Section 617 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( 15 U.S.C. 1681o7 ) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: (c) Class action lawsuits With respect to a class action (as such term is defined in section 1711 of title 28, United States Code), or series of class actions arising out of the same failure to comply of a person, brought by consumers against a person who negligently fails to comply with any requirement imposed under this title, such person is liable to such consumers in an amount equal to the sum of any actual damages sustained by the consumers as a result of the failure, except that the total recovery (excluding reasonable attorney’s fees as determined by the court) of the class shall not exceed the lesser of— (1) $500,000; or (2) 1 percent of the net worth of such person. .