Credit grantors, from banks to catalogers would have to provide consumers with detailed explanations of how and why they were either granted or denied credit under a bill sponsored by Rep. Harold Ford (D-TN).
The bill, HR-1176 amending the Fair Credit Reporting Act, would require firms to tell consumers applying for credit about the criteria they use to determine a person's creditworthiness, such as employment, earnings and prior credit history and existing debts and how each component was used to decide if an applicant was or was not granted credit.
Additionally, it would authorize credit-reporting agencies for the first time to electronically send a consumer a copy of his or her credit report.
Both the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Trade Commission would be directed under the bill to monitor and file a report with Congress about the actions of credit grantors in complying with its mandates.
Ford's bill would complement a measure introduced earlier in the month by Rep. John LaFalce (D-NY), to amend the Truth In Lending Act.
