Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. DEAN. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2547.

First, I would like to thank and lift up Chairwoman Waters for bringing up and authoring this important package, H.R. 2547, the Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act, and for including two of my bills in this legislation. We must work to ensure that debt collection is fair, transparent, and free from harassment.

One of my two bills is in this package. It is the Fair Debt Collection Practices for Servicemembers Act. It will protect our heroes from unfair and aggressive debt harassment. These debt collection practices are manipulative and can interfere with soldiers' careers, like contacting their superior officers or threatening a rank reduction.

Unfortunately, these practices do not stop with the servicemember. Debt collectors also target military spouses, unfairly burdening our military families who have sacrificed so much.

The language in this bill would specifically prohibit debt collectors from conveying any threat to a servicemember, or his or her dependents, to have his or her rank reduced, their security clearance revoked, or prosecution occur under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

These tactics must stop; our servicemembers, men and women, make extraordinary sacrifices on our behalf. I thank all the veterans and servicemembers who work in my office, Tim, Dave, and Timmy, and my own two brothers who have fought to protect our country.

I recognize and appreciate the bipartisan support for this bill.

My second bill in this package was written to correct an unfair practice a constituent brought to our office's attention. A constituent reached out for help getting a private student loan discharged because her daughter had become completely and totally permanently disabled. The mother was left with the remaining balance of the daughter's private student loans as a cosigner.

The lending company said it was their policy to forgive the debt for the borrower but not for the cosigner of the original agreement. Further research by my office staff revealed there was no legal operating standard for discharging private student loans for cosigners after a permanent and total disability.

This is wrong. No one can anticipate permanent disability, and we should work to decrease the burden that these people and their families face, which is what the Private Loan Disability Discharge Act will accomplish.

This legislation will require private student loan lenders to discharge the loan balance for both the borrower and the cosigner if the borrower becomes totally and permanently disabled.

This bill does not punish private lenders; it ensures all lenders are following the same rules.

Both of these bills are about fairness and respect to the lender and consumer, following the spirit of the entire Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act.

This bill would protect servicemembers, small and minority-owned businesses, student loan borrowers, and those with disabilities, medical debt, and more.

This package will place consumers and people first.

Again, I thank Chairwoman Waters for her leadership, and I urge all of our colleagues to join me in supporting this important consumer and constituent protection legislation.

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