PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Feb 27, 2025
Stopping Abuse and Fraud in Electronic Lending Act of 2025 or the SAFE Lending Act of 2025
This bill creates additional consumer protections applicable to certain credit and banking transactions, including matters concerning remotely created checks, electronic fund transfers, registration of small-dollar lenders, overdraft fees, and the collection of personal information.
Under the bill, remotely created checks may only be issued by a person specifically designated in writing by a consumer. The consumer must provide the designation to the consumer's depository institution. (A remotely created check is a check not issued by the bank and not signed by the account owner.)
A voluntary agreement to repay a small-dollar consumer credit transaction by an electronic fund transfer is subject to certain protections, including the right of the consumer to stop payment.
Small-dollar consumer credit providers must register with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Any small-dollar consumer credit transaction is subject to the laws of the state in which the consumer resides.
The bill also prohibits overdraft fees on prepaid accounts.
People & committees
Rep. Bonamici, Suzanne [D-OR-1] · D–OR
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
Source last updated: Feb 4, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-02-27 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
The proposed SAFE Lending Act of 2025 would give consumers more control over certain payments from their bank accounts and add protections for small-dollar borrowing. It would require lender registration, apply borrowers’ home-state pricing laws to specified loans, and ban prepaid-account overdraft fees. It would also restrict businesses that collect or arrange to distribute sensitive financial information for prospective borrowers, while allowing direct lenders and specified technical services to operate within stated exceptions.
This Act may be cited as the Stopping Abuse and Fraud in Electronic Lending Act of 2025 or the SAFE Lending Act of 2025.
a remotely created check may only be issued by a person designated in writing by a consumer, with that written designation specifically provided by the consumer to the insured depository institution at which the consumer maintains the account from which the check is to be drawn.
A person shall register with the Bureau before extending credit to a consumer under a small-dollar consumer credit transaction.
any small-dollar consumer credit transaction, as defined in section 110(a), shall be made in compliance with the laws of the State in which the consumer to which credit in the transaction is extended resides with respect to annual percentage rates, interest, fees, charges, and such other similar or related matters as the Bureau may determine, by rule
it shall be unlawful for any person to charge the consumer a fee for an overdraft with respect to the prepaid account
No person may facilitate, broker, arrange for, or gather applications for the distribution of sensitive personal financial information in connection with a small-dollar consumer credit transaction unless the person is directly providing the small-dollar consumer credit to a consumer.
For the purposes of this section, it shall not be considered facilitating, brokering, arranging for, or gathering applications for the distribution of sensitive personal financial information in connection with a small-dollar consumer credit transaction to be engaged solely in one of the following activities:
The bill would define a remotely created check as a paper or electronic check that is neither created by the institution holding the account nor signed, or purportedly signed, by the account holder. The Bureau could extend that definition to other payment orders by rule.
the term remotely created check means a check, including a paper or electronic check and any other payment order that the Bureau, by rule, determines is appropriately covered under this subsection, that— (i) is not created by the financial institution that holds the customer account from which the check is to be paid; and (ii) does not bear a signature applied, or purported to be applied, by the person from whose account the check is to be paid.
A consumer would have to designate a remotely created check issuer in writing and provide that designation to the insured institution holding the account. The consumer could revoke the designation at any time, and the Bureau could impose additional restrictions by rule.
Subject to the limitations in paragraph (3) and any additional limitations that the Bureau may establish by rule, a remotely created check may only be issued by a person designated in writing by a consumer, with that written designation specifically provided by the consumer to the insured depository institution at which the consumer maintains the account from which the check is to be drawn.
A designation provided by a consumer under paragraph (2) may be revoked at any time by the consumer.
The bill would prohibit issuing any payment order, including a remotely created check, in response to a consumer exercising or attempting to exercise rights under federal consumer financial law or another law or regulation within the Bureau’s jurisdiction.
No payment order, including a remotely created check, may be issued by any person in response to the exercise of, or attempt to exercise, any right by a consumer under— (i) any Federal consumer financial law; or (ii) any other provision of any law or regulation within the jurisdiction of the Bureau.
The bill would replace the words “preauthorized electronic fund transfers” with “an electronic fund transfer” in an existing Electronic Fund Transfer Act provision. The surrounding existing restriction is not reproduced, so the supplied text does not establish its complete scope.
Section 913 of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (15 U.S.C. 1693k) is amended— (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting (a) In general.— before No person; (2) in subsection (a)(1), as so designated, by striking preauthorized electronic fund transfers and inserting an electronic fund transfer
If a consumer voluntarily agreed to repay a covered small-dollar loan through an electronic transfer, the bill would give that transfer the protections that the Electronic Fund Transfer Act provides for preauthorized transfers. The bill does not reproduce those existing protections.
If a consumer voluntarily agrees to repay an extension of a small-dollar consumer credit transaction, as defined in section 110(a) of the Truth in Lending Act, by means of an electronic fund transfer, the electronic fund transfer shall be treated as a preauthorized electronic fund transfer subject to the protections of this title.
The proposed small-dollar credit definition would cover consumer credit of $5,000 or less, with authority for the Bureau to raise that ceiling to reflect the specified consumer price index. Coverage would also depend on the repayment arrangement: a plan other than an open-end credit plan with installments of less than 12 months; an open-end plan whose advances must each be fully repaid by a defined time or event; or another plan designated by Bureau rule.
means any transaction that extends credit that is— (A) made to a consumer in an amount that is not more than— (i) $5,000; or (ii) such greater amount as the Bureau may, by rule, determine to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers published by the Department of Labor; and (B) extended pursuant to an agreement that is— (i) (I) other than an open end credit plan; and (II) payable in 1 or more installments of less than 12 months; (ii) an open end credit plan in which each advance is fully repayable within a defined time or in connection with a defined event, or both; or (iii) any other plan as the Bureau determines, by rule
The small-dollar transaction definition would also include facilitating, brokering, arranging, or collecting applications for covered credit. The bill would require a person to register with the Bureau before extending credit under a covered transaction.
includes any action that facilitates, brokers, arranges, or gathers applications for a transaction described in paragraph (1).
A person shall register with the Bureau before extending credit to a consumer under a small-dollar consumer credit transaction.
Covered loans made through the listed remote channels, or conducted by a national bank, would have to comply with the borrower’s home-state laws on annual percentage rates, interest, fees and charges. The Bureau could identify similar or related matters by rule. For national banks, the requirement would apply regardless of whether the transaction used one of the listed remote channels.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, any small-dollar consumer credit transaction, as defined in section 110(a), shall be made in compliance with the laws of the State in which the consumer to which credit in the transaction is extended resides with respect to annual percentage rates, interest, fees, charges, and such other similar or related matters as the Bureau may determine, by rule, if the small-dollar consumer credit transaction is— (1) made— (A) over the internet; (B) by telephone; (C) by facsimile; (D) by mail; (E) by electronic mail; or (F) through another electronic communication; or (2) conducted by a national bank.
The bill would prohibit charging consumers overdraft fees on prepaid accounts. An institution could decline a transaction exceeding the account balance; the bill would permit, rather than require, that refusal. Which accounts qualify would depend on the referenced regulatory definition or its successor.
the term prepaid account has the meaning given the term in section 1005.2 of title 12, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation.
(A) it shall be unlawful for any person to charge the consumer a fee for an overdraft with respect to the prepaid account; (B) any transaction for an amount that exceeds the account balance of the prepaid account may be declined by the financial institution holding the prepaid account
The Bureau could prohibit additional prepaid-account fees by rule to prevent unfair, deceptive or abusive practices and help consumers understand and compare costs. This would authorize further restrictions, rather than itself prohibit every prepaid-account fee.
the Bureau may, by rule, prohibit any person from charging a fee with respect to the prepaid account (other than a fee described in subparagraph (a)) so that the Bureau may— (i) prevent unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices; and (ii) promote the ability of the consumer to understand and compare the costs of prepaid accounts.
For its restrictions on collecting prospective borrowers’ information, the bill would define sensitive personal financial information to include Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, bank routing and account numbers, and security or access codes immediately necessary to access an individual’s financial account.
the term sensitive personal financial information means a social security number, financial account number, bank routing number, bank account number, or security or access code that is immediately necessary to permit access to the financial account of an individual
People or businesses arranging distribution of sensitive financial information in connection with covered loans would have to prominently disclose information identifying them or allowing them to be contacted. This would include information for delivering legal papers and identifying the registrant of a domain name they register or use.
Any person facilitating, brokering, arranging for, or gathering applications for the distribution of sensitive personal financial information in connection with a small-dollar consumer credit transaction shall prominently disclose information by which the person may be contacted or identified, including for service of process and for identification of the registrant of any domain name registered or used.
The bill would prohibit facilitating, brokering, arranging, or gathering applications for distribution of sensitive financial information connected with covered loans unless the person directly provides the credit to a consumer. This restriction would concern arranging distribution, not only selling information.
No person may facilitate, broker, arrange for, or gather applications for the distribution of sensitive personal financial information in connection with a small-dollar consumer credit transaction unless the person is directly providing the small-dollar consumer credit to a consumer.
The lead-generation section would exclude someone engaged solely in providing telecommunications service, internet access, or an internet information-location tool. These are activity-based exclusions from this section’s definition of arranging distribution.
For the purposes of this section, it shall not be considered facilitating, brokering, arranging for, or gathering applications for the distribution of sensitive personal financial information in connection with a small-dollar consumer credit transaction to be engaged solely in one of the following activities: (A) The provision of a telecommunications service, an Internet access service, or an Internet information location tool.
The same section would also exclude someone engaged solely in specified communication-handling activities, such as transmission, storage, hosting or translation, without selecting or altering content. It would allow deletion of another person’s material consistent with the referenced Communications Act provision.
For the purposes of this section, it shall not be considered facilitating, brokering, arranging for, or gathering applications for the distribution of sensitive personal financial information in connection with a small-dollar consumer credit transaction to be engaged solely in one of the following activities:
(B) The transmission, storage, retrieval, hosting, formatting, or translation (or any combination thereof) of a communication, without selection or alteration of the content of the communication, except the deletion of a particular communication or material made by another person in a manner that is consistent with section 230(c) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230(c)).
The bill would preserve the Bureau’s authority to further restrict activities covered by the lead-generation section.
Nothing in this section may be construed to limit the authority of the Bureau to further restrict activities covered by this section.
Within 180 days after enactment, the Comptroller General would have to conduct a study of access to capital on Tribal reservations and how online and offline small-dollar lending to Tribal members has affected their economic opportunity and wealth. This is a research requirement, not a finding that those loans have helped or harmed Tribal members.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study regarding— (1) the availability of capital on reservations of Indian Tribes; and (2) the impact that small-dollar consumer credit extended through internet and non-internet means to members of Indian Tribes has had on economic opportunity and wealth for members of Indian Tribes.
For that study, the Comptroller General would consult, as appropriate, with the consumer financial regulator, the Federal Reserve Board, the Bureau of Indian Affairs director, federally recognized Tribes and community development financial institutions operating on Indian lands. The study would go to four specified House and Senate committees.
the term appropriate committees of Congress means— (A) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; (B) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate; (C) the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives; and (D) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives
the Comptroller General of the United States shall consult, as appropriate, with— (1) the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection; (2) the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; (3) the Director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs; (4) federally recognized Indian Tribes; and (5) community development financial institutions operating in Indian lands.
The Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress the study required under subsection (b).
The Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection would have to adopt any necessary final implementing rules within one year after enactment. That is a rulemaking deadline, not an expressly stated general effective date for every provision.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall adopt any final rules that are necessary to implement the provisions of this Act and the amendments made by this Act.
The supplied official-actions snapshot, updated February 4, 2026, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on Financial Services on February 27, 2025. It does not establish the bill’s status after that snapshot.
Source snapshot updated 2026-02-04T05:06:18Z. 2025-02-27: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services. 2025-02-27: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-02-27. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision or policy rider was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish the contents or attachment history of other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for particular recipients or places was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version; formal earmark disclosures and accompanying materials are not supplied.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
Findings to examine
The supplied introduced text contains a limited, activity-based exclusion from its lead-generation restrictions. This classification describes the exception without judging its justification.
Providers engaged solely in specified telecommunications, internet-access, information-location or communication-handling activities would be excluded from the lead-generation section’s definition of arranging distribution of sensitive financial information. This gives those technical-service providers a narrower exclusion tied to the main lending policy. Communication handlers must not select or alter content, apart from deletion consistent with the referenced Communications Act provision; the exclusion is not a blanket exemption for all their business activities.
No person may facilitate, broker, arrange for, or gather applications for the distribution of sensitive personal financial information in connection with a small-dollar consumer credit transaction unless the person is directly providing the small-dollar consumer credit to a consumer.
For the purposes of this section, it shall not be considered facilitating, brokering, arranging for, or gathering applications for the distribution of sensitive personal financial information in connection with a small-dollar consumer credit transaction to be engaged solely in one of the following activities: (A) The provision of a telecommunications service, an Internet access service, or an Internet information location tool. (B) The transmission, storage, retrieval, hosting, formatting, or translation (or any combination thereof) of a communication, without selection or alteration of the content of the communication, except the deletion of a particular communication or material made by another person in a manner that is consistent with section 230(c) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230(c)).
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Feb 4, 2026. How PlainBill uses AI