New York Representative Carolyn Maloney recently introduced H.R. 5244, the “Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights Act of 2008”. Maloney calls the bill "comprehensive credit card reform legislation" that does away with "abuses that unfairly hurt consumers". Provisions of the bill include:
* The prohibition of "arbitrary interest rate increases"
* a notice of any interest rate increase at least 45 days in advance
* the right to pay off one's existing balance at the current interest rate if the rate increased
* a requirement that cardholders who pay on time will not be "unfairly penalized"
* prohibitions on "due date gimmicks" and "misleading terms"
* allowing cardholders to set their own limits on their credit
* application of credits and allocation of payments "promptly and fairly"
* a prohibition of imposing "excessive fees" on cardholders
* a prohibition on issuing subprime credit cards to people who can't afford them"
There are 45 co-sponsors and none of them are from Iowa.
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