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H.R.3977 / 111th Congress

Credit Card Fee Limitation and Accountability Act

Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.

Official summary

Version 00 · Introduced in House · Oct 29, 2009

Credit Card Fee Limitation and Accountability Act - Amends the Truth in Lending Act, as amended by the Credit CARD Act of 2009, to prohibit a creditor from imposing upon an open-end consumer credit account any fee related to failure of the consumer to: (1) use the credit card to obtain an extension of credit; (2) carry an outstanding balance from any billing cycle to another; and (3) obtain a minimum amount of credit under such account during any specified period.

Permits a consumer to: (1) cancel an account within 45 days of receiving notice of an annual fee if no such fee existed upon the account's initial opening; and (2) pay any outstanding account balance at the time of cancellation in accordance with the terms in effect at the time of such cancellation.

Prohibits a creditor, as a result of such cancellation, from taking action against a consumer which would adversely affect the consumer's ability to obtain credit under open-end consumer credit plan.

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Requires any annual fee that a card issuer may impose with respect to a credit card account under an open-end consumer credit plan to be reasonable.

Directs the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to issue final rules, within six months after the enactment of this Act, to establish standards for assessing whether the amount of any annual fee is reasonable.

Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to prohibit a consumer credit reporting entity from taking action or making any determination based upon consumer cancellation of a credit card account which would result in a consumer credit score lower than that which would result without taking such cancellation into account.

Read the summary on Congress.gov
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Who introduced it

Rep. Sutton, Betty [D-OH-13] · D–OH

Committees

  • Financial Services Committee
15 cosponsorship records, including any withdrawals

Actions

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  1. Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.

  2. Introduced in House

  3. Introduced in House

Bill text & related measures

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Related bills identified by Congress.gov

No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.

Source last updated: Aug 14, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.

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Objective

Analyze H.R.3977 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.

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Fairness and public impact

Progressive lens

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Individual rights and government power

Liberty lens

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