Senate committee approves bill to send out free credit reports, pre-empt state protections(rights)

Associated Press ^ | 09-23-03

[Brian S]

Americans could get free credit reports e-mailed annually to their homes under legislation easily approved by the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday.

State governments could lose the ability to create stronger consumer protection rules, however.

The committee agreed on a voice vote to reauthorize and make permanent the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which created a national credit reporting standard and banned states from setting their own rules on how businesses use, share and report data on consumers.

[BushCountry]

Look, I think free credits reports email to everyone is a good thing. Something like 40% of these reports are incorrect. The issues involved with this bill are confusing to say the least, so I don't know what to think.

[appeal2]

It really is a simple matter. If you want banks and other financial institutions to be able to issue credit on a national basis then you can't have 50 different laws about what you can do with a credit report. This is a case where national regulation is by far the best course. Giving consumers free access to their credit reports will help cut down on identity fraud. Ideally consumers should be able to get their credit report online at will. Also people should get notified when their report is accessed or changed. With this type of access, identity fraud would be a thing of the past.

[BushCountry]

Everything you just said sounds good. The states right issue in the post topic?