Nine Months Later, Credit Card Reform Arrives

Today, the long-awaited and long-needed changes laid down by the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act go into effect.  When the bill was passed last May, it was the first meaningful credit card legislation that had ever been passed on the federal level.

The Credit CARD Act allows for a new level of oversight and regulation that will end some of the worst abuses committed by credit card companies.  We’ve updated all of our credit card resource pages to reflect the way this bill changes things for consumers.

While the Credit CARD Act is a huge step in the right direction, credit card companies are already hard at work finding new ways to get around the rules.  It ends some of the worst abuses, but does nothing to deal with others like usurious interest rates, over-the-limit fees, and other deceptive interest rate increases.

That’s why we’re fighting for the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA).  No matter how many laws Congress passes, the banks will always be looking for loopholes they can exploit in order to make more money, and Congress will never be able to respond quickly enough to completely protect consumers.  We need an agency dedicated entirely to making sure banks aren’t selling bad practices and products; we need a CFPA.

(Photo: Andresreuda)