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The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 833, the 'Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1999', by a vote of 313-108 Wednesday. The U.S. Senate is expected to vote on its version of the legislation by the end of this month. The White House has indicated it will not automatically veto the House bill, however the administration has objected to the use of a means test to force some debtors into a Chapter 13 repayment plan instead of permitting them to erase their debts entirely through a Chapter 7 filing. The House Judiciary Committee tried to lessen the impact of the means test provision, through an amendment, but the it was turned down by a 184-238 vote. However House lawmakers did adopt an amendment requiring credit card issuers to clearly disclose fees, teaser rate/go-to interest rates and how long it takes cardholders to pay off balances by making minimum monthly payments. The amendment also requires issuers marketing credit cards on the Internet to fully disclose terms and conditions of their offers. Lobbying for bankruptcy reform has been "awesome" according to one House member. Public records indicate VISA and MasterCard jointly spent $5.4 million lobbying for bankruptcy reform last year. Meanwhile the White House issued a laundry list of proposed new consumer protection issues yesterday. The list covered consumer financial privacy, improving financial literacy, and expanding access to financial services.
