[House Report 116-654]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


116th Congress     }                                   {        Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session        }                                   {       116-654

======================================================================



 
                 STOP DEBT COLLECTION ABUSE ACT OF 2019

                                _______
                                

 December 15, 2020.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Ms. Waters, from the Committee on Financial Services, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                             together with

                             MINORITY VIEWS

                        [To accompany H.R. 4403]

    The Committee on Financial Services, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 4403) to amend the Fair Debt Collection 
Practices Act to restrict the debt collection practices of 
certain debt collectors, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that the 
bill as amended do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose and Summary..............................................     3
Background and Need for Legislation..............................     3
Section-by-Section Analysis......................................     5
Hearings.........................................................     6
Committee Consideration..........................................     6
Committee Votes..................................................     6
Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the 
  Committee......................................................     8
Statement of Performance Goals and Objectives....................     8
New Budget Authority and CBO Cost Estimate.......................     8
Committee Cost Estimate..........................................     8
Unfunded Mandate Statement.......................................     8
Advisory Committee...............................................     8
Application of Law to the Legislative Branch.....................     9
Earmark Statement................................................     9
Duplication of Federal Programs..................................     9
Changes to Existing Law..........................................     9

    The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Stop Debt Collection Abuse Act of 
2019''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

  Section 803 of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 
1692a) is amended--
          (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ``facilitating collection 
        of such debt for another'' and inserting ``collection of such 
        debt'';
          (2) by amending paragraph (5) to read as follows:
          ``(5) The term `debt' means--
                  ``(A) any obligation or alleged obligation of a 
                consumer to pay money arising out of a transaction in 
                which the money, property, insurance, or services which 
                are the subject of the transaction are primarily for 
                personal, family, or household purposes, whether or not 
                such obligation has been reduced to judgment; or
                  ``(B) any obligation or alleged obligation of a 
                consumer--
                          ``(i) to pay a loan, an overpayment, a fine, 
                        a penalty, a fee, or other money currently or 
                        originally owed to a Federal agency; and
                          ``(ii) that is not less than 180 days past 
                        due.''; and
          (3) in paragraph (6)--
                  (A) by striking the first sentence and inserting the 
                following: ``The term `debt collector' means any person 
                who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or 
                the mails in any business the principal purpose of 
                which is the collection of any debts; who regularly 
                collects or attempts to collect, directly or 
                indirectly, by the person's own means or by hiring 
                another debt collector, debts owed or due or asserted 
                to be owed or due another or that have been obtained by 
                assignment or transfer from another; or who regularly 
                collects debts currently or originally owed or 
                allegedly owed to a Federal agency.''; and
                  (B) in subparagraph (F), by inserting ``or that has 
                been obtained by assignment or transfer from another'' 
                after ``owed or due another''.

SEC. 3. DEBT COLLECTION PRACTICES FOR DEBT COLLECTORS HIRED BY 
                    GOVERNMENT AGENCIES.

  (a) In General.--The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 
1692 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 812 (15 U.S.C. 
1692j) the following:

``Sec. 812A. Debt collection practices for debt collectors hired by 
                    Federal agencies

  ``(a) Limitation on Time To Turn Debt Over to Debt Collector.--A 
Federal agency that is a creditor may sell or transfer a debt described 
in section 803(5)(B) to a debt collector not earlier than 90 days after 
the date on which the obligation or alleged obligation becomes 
delinquent or defaults.
  ``(b) Required Notice.--
          ``(1) In general.--Before transferring or selling a debt 
        described in section 803(5)(B) to a debt collector or 
        contracting with a debt collector to collect such a debt, a 
        Federal agency shall notify the consumer not fewer than 3 times 
        that the Federal agency will take such action.
          ``(2) Frequency of notifications.--The second and third 
        notifications described in paragraph (1) shall be made not less 
        than 30 days after the date on which the previous notification 
        is made.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for the Fair Debt 
Collection Practices Act is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 812 the following:

``812A. Debt collection practices for debt collectors hired by Federal 
agencies.''.

SEC. 4. UNFAIR PRACTICES.

  Section 808 of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 
1692f) is amended by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 
following:
          ``(1) The collection of any amount (including any interest, 
        fee, charge, or expense incidental to the principal obligation) 
        unless--
                  ``(A) such amount is expressly authorized by the 
                agreement creating the debt or permitted by law; and
                  ``(B) in the case of any amount charged by a debt 
                collector collecting a debt described in section 
                803(5)(B), such amount is--
                          ``(i) reasonable in relation to the actual 
                        costs of the collection;
                          ``(ii) authorized by a contract between the 
                        debt collector and the Federal agency; and
                          ``(iii) not greater than 10 percent of the 
                        amount collected by the debt collector.''.

SEC. 5. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE STUDY AND REPORT.

  (a) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
commence a study on the use of debt collectors by State and local 
government agencies, including--
          (1) the powers given to the debt collectors by Federal, 
        State, and local government agencies;
          (2) the contracting process that allows a Federal, State, or 
        local government agency to award debt collection to a certain 
        company, including the selection process;
          (3) any fees charged to debtors in addition to principal and 
        interest on the outstanding debt;
          (4) how the fees described in paragraph (3) vary from State 
        to State;
          (5) consumer protection at the State level that offer 
        recourse to those whom debts have been wrongfully attributed;
          (6) the revenues received by debt collectors from Federal, 
        State, and local government agencies;
          (7) the amount of any revenue sharing agreements between debt 
        collectors and Federal, State, and local government agencies;
          (8) the difference in debt collection procedures across 
        geographic regions, including the extent to which debt 
        collectors pursue court judgments to collect debts; and
          (9) any legal immunity or other protections given to the debt 
        collectors hired by State and local government agencies, 
        including whether the debt collectors are subject to the Fair 
        Debt Collection Practices Act (15 U.S.C. 1692 et seq.).
  (b) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
Congress a report on the completed study required under subsection (a).

                          Purpose and Summary

    On September 19, 2019, Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II 
(D-MO) introduced H.R. 4403, the ``Stop Debt Collection Abuse 
Act of 2019,'' which extends the protections in the Fair Debt 
Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) as it relates to debt owed to 
a federal agency, and limits the fees debt collectors can 
charge. The legislation clarifies that debt buyers are subject 
to FDCPA and requires a GAO study on the use of debt collectors 
by state and local government agencies. Representative French 
Hill (R-AK) was the Republican sponsor of the bill.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    Currently, the FDCPA makes it illegal for debt collectors 
to use abusive, unfair, or deceptive practices when collecting 
debts from consumers. As discussed at a September 2019 House 
Financial Services Committee hearing on debt collection 
practices,\1\ the FDCPA currently does not apply to debt 
collectors hired by federal government entities. At the 
hearing, April Kuehnhoff from the National Consumer Law Center 
testified that extending FDCPA to debt collectors hired by 
federal government entities is especially important because, 
``collection by, or on behalf of, the government is already 
unusually coercive as a result of the government's police power 
and other means of seizing citizens' assets.''\2\ Therefore, 
this legislation would close that loophole by amending the 
FDCPA to make clear that protections from certain debt 
collection practices also apply to debt collection agents hired 
by the federal government.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions 
hearing, ``Examining Legislation to Protect Consumers and Small 
Business Owners from Abusive Debt Collection Practices,'' Sep. 26, 
2019.
    \2\See Testimony of April Kuehnhoff, National Consumer Law Center 
before Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions 
hearing, ``Examining Legislation to Protect Consumers and Small 
Business Owners from Abusive Debt Collection Practices,'' at 38, Sep. 
26, 2019.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Debt collection is one of the top complaints the CFPB hears 
about on an annual basis. In 2019 alone, the CFPB handled 
approximately 75,200 debt collection complaints related to 
first-party and third-party collections, one of the most 
complaints by volume received by the Bureau.\3\ Within debt 
collection complaints, the most common complaint from consumers 
was that a company was attempting to collect a debt that the 
consumer didn't even owe. The next two most common complaint 
issues were, respectively, a lack of written notifications 
about the debt, and taking or threatening a negative or legal 
action when it was not warranted.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\CFPB, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Releases Report on 
2019 Administration of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act; 
Announces Extension of Comment Period (Mar. 20, 2020), https://
www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/newsroom/cfpb-releases-2019-
administration-fair-debt-collection-practices-act-report.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Debt collection lawsuits are another pressing problem that 
was discussed during the committee hearing. The National 
Consumer Law Center found that debt collectors obtain default 
judgments against consumers in an overwhelming majority of debt 
collection cases.\4\ Incredibly, very often these judgments 
occur without debt collectors having to present any substantive 
evidence. Debt collectors prey on vulnerable consumers, 
including African-American and Hispanic households. A recent 
investigation showed that in the three cities of Chicago, 
Newark, and St. Louis, the rate of judgments in debt collection 
lawsuits was two times as high in African-American 
neighborhoods as compared to White neighborhoods.\5\ 
Furthermore, the Urban Institute recently found that 71 million 
consumers had a debt in collection showing up on their credit 
report, which is nearly a third of all adults with credit 
reports.\6\ The Committee witnesses testified about how being 
subject to debt collection can cause immense stress and 
uncertainty, especially when a consumer is subject to 
harassment through threats of a lawsuit or some other type of 
negative action against the consumer.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \4\National Consumer Law Center, Consumer Debt Collection Facts 
(Feb. 2018), https://www.nclc.org/issues/consumer-debt-collection-
facts.html.
    \5\ProPublica, The Color of Debt: How Collection Suits Squeeze 
Black Neighborhoods (Oct. 8, 2020) https://www.propublica.org/article/
debt-collection-lawsuits-squeeze-black-neighborhoods.
    \6\Urban Institute, 71 million US adults have debt in collections 
(Jul. 19, 2018) https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/71-million-us-adults-
have-debt-collections.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    This legislation makes clear that overpayment, fines, 
penalties, and fees owed by private individuals to federal 
government entities would be considered ``consumer debts'' that 
fall under the FDCPA's protections. This legislation also 
prevents private debt collectors from charging exorbitant and 
unfair fees, and it would ensure that fees from debt collectors 
working on behalf of the federal government cannot be greater 
than a certain percentage of the amount collected, and that the 
amount is reasonable. This legislation also confirms that debt 
buyers are debt collectors for the purposes of the FDCPA, and 
it sets forth requirements that would prevent debt collectors 
from taking aggressive action unnecessarily quickly after a 
debt has allegedly gone unpaid.
    This legislation will create a level playing field by 
extending the FDCPA's consumer protections to include those 
companies collecting on debt owed to a federal agency. The bill 
curbs excessive fees debt collectors can charge, and it 
requires a GAO study on the use of debt collectors by state and 
local government agencies, so we can see how these types of 
debts are collected, informing future efforts to strengthen 
protections for consumers.
    The legislation is similar to a bipartisan bill from the 
115th Congress, H.R. 864, that was sponsored by former Reps. 
Mia Love and Keith Ellison as well as Reps. Cleaver and Hill. 
Furthermore, this legislation is supported by over 20 civil 
rights and consumer rights groups, including Americans for 
Financial Reform, Allied Progress, California Reinvestment 
Coalition, Consumer Action, Consumer Federation of America, 
Consumer Reports, Florida Alliance for Consumer Protection, 
Illinois Asset Building Group, Legal Services of New Jersey, 
Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition, NAACP, National Association 
of Consumer Advocates, National Center for Law and Economic 
Justice, National Consumer Law Center, Public Citizen, Public 
Justice Center, Public Law Center, Statewide Poverty Action 
Network, and Tennessee Citizen Action.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis


Section 1. Short title

    This section provides that H.R. 4403 may be cited as the 
``Stop Debt Collection Abuse Act of 2019''.

Section 2. Definitions

    Section 2 amends Section 803 of the Fair Debt Collection 
Practices Act to make certain technical edits, and to include, 
as part of the definition of debt, any obligation or alleged 
obligation by a consumer to pay a loan, an overpayment, a fine, 
a penalty, a fee, or other money currently or originally owed 
to a Federal agency that is past due for a certain length of 
time.

Section 3. Debt collection practices for debt collectors hired by 
        government agencies

    Section 3 amends the FDCPA to place a limitation on Federal 
agencies that are creditors to sell or transfer a debt covered 
by this legislation for a certain period of time. This section 
also requires the Federal agency to notify the consumer not 
fewer than 3 times when a debt is transferred or sold, and 
requires these notices to not be sent out less than 30 days 
apart.

Section 4. Unfair practices

    Section 4 amends Section 808 of the FDCPA to require that 
collections of any covered account can only occur when 
expressly authorized by the agreement creating the debt or 
permitted by law. Furthermore, when the amount is charged by 
the debt collector, this section requires that the charge is 
reasonable in relation to the actual costs of the collection, 
authorized by a contract between the debt collector and the 
Federal agency, and not greater than a certain percent of the 
amount collected by the debt collector.

Section 5. GAO study and report

    Section 5 requires the Government Accountability Office 
(GAO) to conduct a study on the use of debt collectors by State 
and local government agencies, and submit, within one year of 
enactment of this legislation, a report to Congress on the 
completed study.

                                Hearings

    For the purposes of section 103(i) of H. Res. 6 for the 
116th Congress, on September 26, 2019, the Committee on 
Financial Services held a hearing entitled, ``Examining 
Legislation to Protect Consumers and Small Business Owners from 
Abusive Debt Collection Practices'' to discuss ten bills, 
including seven discussion drafts. H.R. 4403 was considered. 
This single-panel hearing included the following witnesses: the 
Honorable Rohit Chopra, Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission; 
Rev. Dr. Cassandra Gould, Pastor, Quinn Chapel A.M.E. Church 
and Executive Director, Missouri Faith Voices; Ms. Bhairavi 
Desai, Executive Director, New York Taxi Workers Alliance; Ms. 
April Kuehnhoff, Staff Attorney, National Consumer Law Center; 
Professor Dalie Jimenez, Professor of Law, University of 
California, Irvine School of Law; Ms. Sarah Auchterlonie, 
Shareholder, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Shreck; and Mr. John H. 
Bedard, Jr., Owner, Bedard Law Group, P.C.

                        Committee Consideration

    The Committee on Financial Services met in open session on 
November 13, 2019, and ordered H.R. 4403 to be reported 
favorably to the House without an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute by a unanimous recorded vote of 54 yeas and 0 neas, 
a quorum being present.

                  Committee Votes and Roll Call Votes

    In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that the 
following roll call votes occurred during the Committee's 
consideration of H.R. 4403:


	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

  Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the Committee

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause 
2(b)(1) of rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives, 
the Committee's oversight findings and recommendations are 
reflected in the descriptive portions of this report.

             Statement of Performance Goals and Objectives

    Pursuant to clause (3)(c) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the goals of H.R. 4403 are to extend 
the protections in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act 
(FDCPA) as it relates to debt owed to a federal agency, and to 
limit the fees debt collectors can charge. The legislation also 
clarifies that debt buyers are subject to FDCPA and requires a 
GAO study on the use of debt collectors by state and local 
government agencies.

               New Budget Authority and CBO Cost Estimate

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives and section 308(a) of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, and pursuant to clause 
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act 
of 1974, the Committee has requested an estimate for H.R. 4403 
from the Director of the Congressional Budget Office. CBO was 
unable to provide an estimate in a timely manner.

                        Committee Cost Estimate

    Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison of the 
costs that would be incurred in carrying out H.R. 4403. 
However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) of that rule provides that this 
requirement does not apply when the committee has included in 
its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill 
prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office 
under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act, which is 
attached. After careful review, including discussions with CBO, 
and after consulting with debt collection experts, the 
Committee estimates that this legislation will have an 
insignificant effect on spending, due to the fact that the 
percent cap on fees applies to only debts that are charged by a 
debt collector, and not by the Federal agency.

                       Unfunded Mandate Statement

    Pursuant to Section 423 of the Congressional Budget and 
Impoundment Control Act (as amended by Section 101(a)(2) of the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act, Pub. L. 104-4), the Committee 
does not believe H.R. 4403, as amended, contains any unfunded 
mandates and adopts any future estimate in this regard prepared 
by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office.

                           Advisory Committee

    No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b) 
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this 
legislation.

              Application of Law to the Legislative Branch

    Pursuant to section 102(b)(3) of the Congressional 
Accountability Act, Pub. L. No. 104-1, H.R. 4403, as amended, 
does not apply to terms and conditions of employment or to 
access to public services or accommodations within the 
legislative branch.

                           Earmark Statement

    In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, H.R. 4403 does not contain any 
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 
benefits as described in clauses 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule 
XXI.

                    Duplication of Federal Programs

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee states that no 
provision of H.R. 4403 establishes or reauthorizes a program of 
the Federal Government known to be duplicative of another 
federal program, a program that was included in any report from 
the Government Accountability Office to Congress pursuant to 
section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program related to a 
program identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal 
Domestic Assistance.

                        Changes to Existing Law

    In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, H.R. 4403, as reported, are shown as follows:

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italics, and existing law in which no 
change is proposed is shown in roman):

                   FAIR DEBT COLLECTION PRACTICES ACT




           *       *       *       *       *       *       *
                 TITLE VIII--DEBT COLLECTION PRACTICES

Sec.
801. Short title.
     * * * * * * *
812. Furnishing certain deceptive forms.
812A. Debt collection practices for debt collectors hired by Federal 
          agencies.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 803. Definitions

   As used in this title--
          (1) The term ``Bureau'' means the Bureau of Consumer 
        Financial Protection.
          (2) The term ``communication'' means the conveying of 
        information regarding a debt directly or indirectly to 
        any person through any medium.
          (3) The term ``consumer'' means any natural person 
        obligated or allegedly obligated to pay any debt.
          (4) The term ``creditor'' means any person who offers 
        or extends credit creating a debt or to whom a debt is 
        owed, but such term does not include any person to the 
        extent that he receives an assignment or transfer of a 
        debt in default solely for the purpose of [facilitating 
        collection of such debt for another] collection of such 
        debt.
          [(5) The term ``debt'' means any obligation or 
        alleged obligation of a consumer to pay money arising 
        out of a transaction in which the money, property, 
        insurance, or services which are the subject of the 
        transaction are primarily for personal, family, or 
        household purposes, whether or not such obligation has 
        been reduced to judgment.]
          (5) The term ``debt'' means--
                  (A) any obligation or alleged obligation of a 
                consumer to pay money arising out of a 
                transaction in which the money, property, 
                insurance, or services which are the subject of 
                the transaction are primarily for personal, 
                family, or household purposes, whether or not 
                such obligation has been reduced to judgment; 
                or
                  (B) any obligation or alleged obligation of a 
                consumer--
                          (i) to pay a loan, an overpayment, a 
                        fine, a penalty, a fee, or other money 
                        currently or originally owed to a 
                        Federal agency; and
                          (ii) that is not less than 180 days 
                        past due.
          (6) [The term ``debt collector'' means any person who 
        uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or the 
        mails in any business the principal purpose of which is 
        the collection of any debts, or who regularly collects 
        or attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, debts 
        owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another.] The 
        term ``debt collector'' means any person who uses any 
        instrumentality of interstate commerce or the mails in 
        any business the principal purpose of which is the 
        collection of any debts; who regularly collects or 
        attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, by the 
        person's own means or by hiring another debt collector, 
        debts owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another 
        or that have been obtained by assignment or transfer 
        from another; or who regularly collects debts currently 
        or originally owed or allegedly owed to a Federal 
        agency. Notwithstanding the exclusion provided by 
        clause (F) of the last sentence of this paragraph, the 
        term includes any creditor who, in the process of 
        collecting his own debts, uses any name other than his 
        own which would indicate that a third person is 
        collecting or attempting to collect such debts. For the 
        purpose of section 808(6), such term also includes any 
        person who uses any instrumentality of interstate 
        commerce or the mails in any business the principal 
        purpose of which is the enforcement of security 
        interests. The term does not include--
                  (A) any officer or employee of a creditor 
                while, in the name of the creditor, collecting 
                debts for such creditor;
                  (B) any person while acting as a debt 
                collector for another person, both of whom are 
                related by common ownership or affiliated by 
                corporate control, if the person acting as a 
                debt collector does so only for persons to whom 
                it is so related or affilated and if the 
                principal business of such person is not the 
                collection of debts;
                  (C) any officer or employee of the United 
                States or any State to the extent that 
                collecting or attempting to collect any debt is 
                in the performance of his official duties;
                  (D) any person while serving or attempting to 
                serve legal process on any other person in 
                connection with the judicial enforcement of any 
                debt;
                  (E) any nonprofit organization which, at the 
                request of consumers, performs bona fide 
                consumer credit counseling and assists 
                consumers in the liquidation of their debts by 
                receiving payments from such consumers and 
                distributing such amounts to creditors;
                  (F) any person collecting or attempting to 
                collect any debt owed or due or asserted to be 
                owed or due another or that has been obtained 
                by assignment or transfer from another to the 
                extent such activity (i) is incidental to a 
                bona fide fiduciary obligation or a bona fide 
                escrow arrangement; (ii) concerns a debt which 
                was originated by such person; (iii) concerns a 
                debt which was not in default at the time it 
                was obtained by such person; or (iv) concerns a 
                debt obtained by such person as a secured party 
                in a commercial credit transaction involving 
                the creditor.
          (7) The term ``location information'' means a 
        consumer's place of abode and his telephone number at 
        such place, or his place of employment.
          (8) The term ``State'' means any State, territory, or 
        possession of the United States, the District of 
        Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any 
        political subdivision of any of the foregoing.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 808. Unfair practices

   A debt collector may not use unfair or unconscionable means 
to collect or attempt to collect any debt. Without limiting the 
general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is 
a violation of this section:
          [(1) The collection of any amount (including any 
        interest, fee, charge, or expense incidental to the 
        principal obligation) unless such amount is expressly 
        authorized by the agreement creating the debt or 
        permitted by law.]
          (1) The collection of any amount (including any 
        interest, fee, charge, or expense incidental to the 
        principal obligation) unless--
                  (A) such amount is expressly authorized by 
                the agreement creating the debt or permitted by 
                law; and
                  (B) in the case of any amount charged by a 
                debt collector collecting a debt described in 
                section 803(5)(B), such amount is--
                          (i) reasonable in relation to the 
                        actual costs of the collection;
                          (ii) authorized by a contract between 
                        the debt collector and the Federal 
                        agency; and
                          (iii) not greater than 10 percent of 
                        the amount collected by the debt 
                        collector.
          (2) The acceptance by a debt collector from any 
        person of a check or other payment instrument postdated 
        by more than five days unless such person is notified 
        in writing of the debt collector's intent to deposit 
        such check or instrument not more than ten nor less 
        than three business days prior to such deposit.
          (3) The solicitation by a debt collector of any 
        postdated check or other postdated payment instrument 
        for the purpose of threatening or instituting criminal 
        prosecution.
          (4) Depositing or threatening to deposit any 
        postdated check or other postdated payment instrument 
        prior to the date on such check or instrument.
          (5) Causing charges to be made to any person for 
        communications by concealment of the true purpose of 
        the communication. Such charges include, but are not 
        limited to, collect telephone calls and telegram fees.
          (6) Taking or threatening to take any nonjudicial 
        action to effect dispossession or disablement of 
        property if--
                  (A) there is no present right to possession 
                of the property claimed as collateral through 
                an enforceable security interest;
                  (B) there is no present intention to take 
                possession of the property; or
                  (C) the property is exempt by law from such 
                dispossession or disablement.
          (7) Communicating with a consumer regarding a debt by 
        post card.
          (8) Using any language or symbol, other than the debt 
        collector's address, on any envelope when communicating 
        with a consumer by use of the mails or by telegram, 
        except that a debt collector may use his business name 
        if such name does not indicate that he is in the debt 
        collection business.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 812A. Debt collection practices for debt collectors hired by 
                    Federal agencies

  (a) Limitation on Time To Turn Debt Over to Debt Collector.--
A Federal agency that is a creditor may sell or transfer a debt 
described in section 803(5)(B) to a debt collector not earlier 
than 90 days after the date on which the obligation or alleged 
obligation becomes delinquent or defaults.
  (b) Required Notice.--
          (1) In general.--Before transferring or selling a 
        debt described in section 803(5)(B) to a debt collector 
        or contracting with a debt collector to collect such a 
        debt, a Federal agency shall notify the consumer not 
        fewer than 3 times that the Federal agency will take 
        such action.
          (2) Frequency of notifications.--The second and third 
        notifications described in paragraph (1) shall be made 
        not less than 30 days after the date on which the 
        previous notification is made.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                             MINORITY VIEWS

    Committee Republicans believe consumers who owe a debt 
should be protected from abusive practices or harassment by 
debt collectors. This includes consumers who owe a debt to the 
federal government.
    In the November 2019 Financial Services Committee markup, 
Committee Republicans supported H.R. 4403, which extended the 
protections set out in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act 
(FCDPA) to debt collected by the federal government. However, 
Committee Democrats did not act on the bill for more than a 
year after it was reported out of the Financial Services 
Committee by a vote of 54-0.
    During the intervening twelve months, the Consumer 
Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its final Debt 
Collection Practices Rule (Rule). The Rule is the result of 
more than seven years of research and analysis conducted by the 
CFPB. It sets forth clear rules of the road for both consumers 
and debt collection agencies outlining acceptable 
communications. However, in promulgating its final Rule, the 
CFPB declined to extend the definition of debt and debt 
collectors to include creditors, debt buyers, or federal agency 
debt. This put H.R. 4403 in conflict with the Rule.
    Committee Republicans support the CFPB's Rule, including 
the definition of debt and debt collector. The Rule reflects 
the technical precision needed to ensure that both consumers 
and debt collectors are protected.
    Committee Republicans encourage Democrats to amend H.R. 
4403 to ensure consistency with the CFPB's Rule. Moreover, 
without such an amendment, Committee Republicans are concerned 
H.R. 4403 may impact issues, like federal student loan debt, 
which is outside this Committee's jurisdiction and better 
addressed by the Committee on Education and Labor.
    For these reasons, Committee Republicans must oppose H.R. 
4403.
                                   Patrick T. McHenry.
                                   Bill Posey.
                                   Bill Huizenga.
                                   Ann Wagner.
                                   Scott R. Tipton.
                                   J. French Hill.
                                   Lee M. Zeldin.
                                   Alexander X. Mooney.
                                   Ted Budd.
                                   Trey Hollingsworth.
                                   John W. Rose.
                                   Lance Gooden.
                                   William R. Timmons, IV.
                                   Frank D. Lucas.
                                   Blaine Luetkemeyer.
                                   Steve Stivers.
                                   Andy Barr.
                                   Roger Williams.
                                   Tom Emmer.
                                   Barry Loudermilk.
                                   Warren Davidson.
                                   David Kustoff.
                                   Anthony Gonzalez.
                                   Bryan Steil.
                                   Denver Riggleman.
                                   Van Taylor.

                                  [all]