WASHINGTON — Democrats in Congress are taking a swipe at credit-card issuers and their increasingly creative reasons for raising fees on strapped consumers, sparking a well-financed duel over how to crack down on alleged abuses.
Striking the right balance between getting credit moving again and protecting consumers who depend on it is a long and complex process and nowhere near complete. But lawmakers were hoping to advance consumer- friendly legislation before they head home for Easter at the end of the week and face their constituents — 12.5 million of whom are out of work.
“Right before this break coming up, I thought it was a good time to try to deal with it, get it done,” said Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn.
His panel led the way Tuesday by narrowly voting to send the full Senate a bill that would ban some of the many reasons credit-card issuers raise interest rates and fees, irking industry advocates who say such limits would ultimately cost consumers more money.
“Making this credit available is a very risky business, and the committee’s action today will unfortunately make it harder, not easier, for banks to continue doing so,” said the American Bankers Association’s Kenneth Clayton.
