Expedited Card Reform For Consumers Act Of 2009

Floor Speech

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Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I extend my support to H.R. 3639, the Expedited CARD Reform for Consumers Act of 2009, and thank my dear friend from New York, Ms. Maloney, for introducing this important legislation, and Chairman Frank for expediting it out of committee.

On May 22, 2009, President Obama signed into law the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act to protect consumers from the most egregious abuses that were being committed by credit card companies. Today, the important legislation before us readdresses this issue and proposes to move up the effective date of certain provisions of the Credit CARD Act to December 1, 2009. I would like to take this time now to express my support for the passage of this legislation.

Today, levels of consumer debt are at an all time high. The most recent data from the 2007 Survey of Consumer Finances shows that half of American families carried a balance on their credit cards and the average balance was $7,300. Add to this amount the debt secured by a primary residence or other consumer and installment loans, and the average American family is hard-pressed to meet these financial obligations.

Many of my colleagues here in Congress and I are concerned about how the current state of the economy is affecting the ability of ordinary Americans to service these high levels of debt. In September, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the American economy lost 260,000 jobs. Without work, most families could not afford to service these loans.

The days of easy and exotic credit are over. American families must work themselves out of debt and back into the black. We, as lawmakers, have been tasked with the job of enacting laws and enforcing fair rules that allow people to use credit cards and other financial services made available to them in a safe and responsible way. We are about to do just that today.

The Expedited CARD Reform for Consumers Act of 2009 is good policy for Americans everywhere. It fulfills our promise of establishing protections against abusive practices in the financial services industry and reaffirms our commitment to helping ordinary consumers responsibly manage their finances by ensuring that the choices available to them are fair and safe. I am proud to support H.R. 3639 and urge my colleagues to assure its passage.

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