US Codex
Bill
Notes

To amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act to provide protections for active duty military consumers, and for other purposes.

S. 2456 · 113th Congress · Jun 10, 2014 · Lineage

A BILL

1. Notice of status as an active duty military consumer

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) is amended—
(1)
in section 605, by adding at the end the following:

“(i) Notice of status as an active duty military consumer—With respect to an adverse item of information about a consumer, if the action or inaction that gave rise to the item occurred while the consumer was an active duty military consumer, the consumer may provide appropriate proof, including official orders, to a consumer reporting agency that the consumer was an active duty military consumer at the time such action or inaction occurred, and any consumer report provided by the consumer reporting agency that includes the item shall clearly and conspicuously disclose that the consumer was an active duty military consumer when the action or inaction that gave rise to the item occurred.”

(2)
in section 605A(c)—
(A)
by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) as subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), respectively, and moving such redesignated subparagraphs 2 ems to the right;
(B)
in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), as so redesignated, by striking “Upon” and inserting the following:

“(1) In general—Upon”

(C)
by adding at the end the following:

“(2) Negative information alert—If a consumer reporting agency receives an adverse item of information about a consumer who has provided appropriate proof that the consumer is an active duty military consumer, the consumer reporting agency shall promptly notify the consumer—

“(A) that the consumer reporting agency has received the adverse item of information, along with a description of the item; and

“(B) the method by which the consumer may dispute the validity of the item.

“(3) Contact information for active duty military consumers—If a consumer who has provided appropriate proof to a consumer reporting agency that the consumer is an active duty military consumer provides the consumer reporting agency with contact information for the purpose of communicating with the consumer while the consumer is an active military consumer, the consumer reporting agency shall use such contact information for all communications while the consumer is an active military consumer.

“(4) Sense of Congress—It is the sense of Congress that any person making use of a consumer report that contains an adverse item of information should, if the action or inaction that gave rise to the item occurred while the consumer was an active duty military consumer, take such fact into account when evaluating the creditworthiness of the consumer.”

(D)
in section 611(a)(1), by adding at the end the following:

“(D) Notice of dispute related to active duty military consumers—With respect to an item of information described under subparagraph (A) that is under dispute, if the consumer to whom the item relates has notified the consumer reporting agency, and has provided appropriate proof, that the consumer was an active duty military consumer at the time the action or inaction that gave rise to the disputed item occurred, the consumer reporting agency shall—

“(i) include such fact in the file of the consumer; and

“(ii) indicate such fact in each consumer report that includes the disputed item.”