Bill Text: IL HB3674 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Provides that, in addition to a freeze on a minor's consumer report, a freeze may be placed on the credit file of a minor and specified other persons. Establishes the procedures for obtaining a freeze on the credit file of a minor or protected consumer. Defines terms.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 2-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-04-12 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB3674 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-HB3674-Introduced.html

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101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2019 and 2020 HB3674 Introduced , by Rep. Mary Edly-Allen SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
815 ILCS 505/2MM
Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Provides that, in addition to a freeze on a minor's consumer report, a freeze may be placed on the credit file of a minor and specified other persons. Establishes the procedures for obtaining a freeze on the credit file of a minor or protected consumer. Defines terms.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning business.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business
Practices Act is amended by changing Section 2MM as follows:
(815 ILCS 505/2MM)
Sec. 2MM. Verification of accuracy of consumer reporting
information used to extend consumers credit and security freeze
on credit reports.
(a) A credit card issuer who mails an offer or solicitation
to apply for a credit card and who receives a completed
application in response to the offer or solicitation which
lists an address that is not substantially the same as the
address on the offer or solicitation may not issue a credit
card based on that application until reasonable steps have been
taken to verify the applicant's change of address.
(b) Any person who uses a consumer credit report in
connection with the approval of credit based on the application
for an extension of credit, and who has received notification
of a police report filed with a consumer reporting agency that
the applicant has been a victim of financial identity theft, as
defined in Section 16-30 or 16G-15 of the Criminal Code of 1961
or the Criminal Code of 2012, may not lend money or extend

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credit without taking reasonable steps to verify the consumer's
identity and confirm that the application for an extension of
credit is not the result of financial identity theft.
(c) A consumer may request that a security freeze be placed
on his or her credit report by sending a request in writing by
certified mail or by at least one of telephone or electronic
means to a consumer reporting agency at an address or telephone
or electronic location designated by the consumer reporting
agency to receive such requests.
The following persons may request that a security freeze be
placed on the credit report of a person with a disability:
(1) a guardian of the person with a disability who is
the subject of the request, appointed under Article XIa of
the Probate Act of 1975; and
(2) an agent of the person with a disability who is the
subject of the request, under a written durable power of
attorney that complies with the Illinois Power of Attorney
Act.
The following persons may request that a security freeze be
placed on the credit report of a minor:
(1) a guardian of the minor who is the subject of the
request, appointed under Article XI of the Probate Act of
1975;
(2) a parent of the minor who is the subject of the
request; and
(3) a guardian appointed under the Juvenile Court Act

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of 1987 for a minor under the age of 18 who is the subject
of the request or, with a court order authorizing the
guardian consent power, for a youth who is the subject of
the request who has attained the age of 18, but who is
under the age of 21.
This subsection (c) does not prevent a consumer reporting
agency from advising a third party that a security freeze is in
effect with respect to the consumer's credit report.
(d) A consumer reporting agency shall place a security
freeze on a consumer's credit report no later than 5 business
days after receiving a written request from the consumer:
(1) a written request described in subsection (c); and
(2) proper identification.
(e) Upon placing the security freeze on the consumer's
credit report, the consumer reporting agency shall send to the
consumer within 10 business days a written confirmation of the
placement of the security freeze and a unique personal
identification number or password or similar device, other than
the consumer's Social Security number, to be used by the
consumer when providing authorization for the release of his or
her credit report for a specific party or period of time.
(f) If the consumer wishes to allow his or her credit
report to be accessed for a specific party or period of time
while a freeze is in place, he or she shall contact the
consumer reporting agency using a point of contact designated
by the consumer reporting agency, request that the freeze be

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temporarily lifted, and provide the following:
(1) proper identification;
(2) the unique personal identification number or
password or similar device provided by the consumer
reporting agency; and
(3) the proper information regarding the third party or
time period for which the report shall be available to
users of the credit report.
A security freeze for a minor may not be temporarily
lifted. This Section does not require a consumer reporting
agency to provide to a minor or a parent or guardian of a minor
on behalf of the minor a unique personal identification number,
password, or similar device provided by the consumer reporting
agency for the minor, or parent or guardian of the minor, to
use to authorize the consumer reporting agency to release
information from a minor.
(f-5) The following persons may request that a security
freeze be placed on the credit file of a minor:
(1) a parent of the minor who is the subject of the
request;
(2) a guardian, appointed under Article XI of the
Probate Act of 1975, of the minor who is the subject of the
request; and
(3) a guardian, appointed under the Juvenile Court Act
of 1987, of a minor under the age of 18 who is the subject
of the request or, with a court order authorizing the

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guardian's consent power, of a youth who is the subject of
the request who has attained the age of 18, but who is
under the age of 21.
(f-10) A request under subsection (f-5) must be in writing
and must contain:
(1) The following information with respect to the
parent or guardian:
(A) complete name, including any suffix;
(B) a complete address;
(C) a copy of the person's social security card or
a certified or official copy of the person's birth
certificate; and
(D) a copy of the person's driver's license,
identification card issued by the Secretary of State or
any other government-issued identification, or a copy
of a utility bill that shows name and home address.
(2) The following information with respect to the
protected consumer or minor who is the subject of the
freeze:
(A) complete name, including any suffix;
(B) a complete address;
(C) a copy of a social security card;
(D) for a minor, a certified or official copy of
the minor's birth certificate; and
(E) for a person under guardianship or power of
attorney, an order issued by a court of law, a lawfully

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executed and valid power of attorney, or a written,
signed, and notarized statement that expressly
describes the authority of the person making the
request to act on behalf of the protected consumer.
A security freeze on a credit file for a minor may not be
temporarily lifted.
(g) A consumer reporting agency shall develop a contact
method to receive and process a request from a consumer to
temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report pursuant to
subsection (f) in an expedited manner.
A contact method under this subsection shall include: (i) a
postal address; and (ii) an electronic contact method chosen by
the consumer reporting agency, which may include the use of
telephone, fax, Internet, or other electronic means.
(h) A consumer reporting agency that receives a request
from a consumer to temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report
pursuant to subsection (f), shall comply with the request no
later than 3 business days after receiving the request.
(i) A consumer reporting agency shall remove or temporarily
lift a freeze placed on a consumer's credit report only in the
following cases:
(1) upon consumer request, pursuant to subsection (f)
or subsection (l) of this Section; or
(2) if the consumer's credit report was frozen due to a
material misrepresentation of fact by the consumer.
If a consumer reporting agency intends to remove a freeze

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upon a consumer's credit report pursuant to this subsection,
the consumer reporting agency shall notify the consumer in
writing prior to removing the freeze on the consumer's credit
report.
(j) If a third party requests access to a credit report on
which a security freeze is in effect, and this request is in
connection with an application for credit or any other use, and
the consumer does not allow his or her credit report to be
accessed for that specific party or period of time, the third
party may treat the application as incomplete.
(k) If a consumer requests a security freeze, the credit
reporting agency shall disclose to the consumer the process of
placing and temporarily lifting a security freeze, and the
process for allowing access to information from the consumer's
credit report for a specific party or period of time while the
freeze is in place.
(l) A security freeze shall remain in place until the
consumer or person authorized under subsection (c) to act on
behalf of the minor or person with a disability who is the
subject of the security freeze requests, using a point of
contact designated by the consumer reporting agency, that the
security freeze be removed. A credit reporting agency shall
remove a security freeze within 3 business days of receiving a
request for removal from the consumer, who provides:
(1) proper identification; and
(2) the unique personal identification number or

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password or similar device provided by the consumer
reporting agency.
(m) A consumer reporting agency shall require proper
identification of the person making a request to place or
remove a security freeze and may require proper identification
and proper authority from the person making the request to
place or remove a freeze on behalf of the person with a
disability or minor.
(n) The provisions of subsections (c) through (m) of this
Section do not apply to the use of a consumer credit report by
any of the following:
(1) A person or entity, or a subsidiary, affiliate, or
agent of that person or entity, or an assignee of a
financial obligation owing by the consumer to that person
or entity, or a prospective assignee of a financial
obligation owing by the consumer to that person or entity
in conjunction with the proposed purchase of the financial
obligation, with which the consumer has or had prior to
assignment an account or contract, including a demand
deposit account, or to whom the consumer issued a
negotiable instrument, for the purposes of reviewing the
account or collecting the financial obligation owing for
the account, contract, or negotiable instrument. For
purposes of this subsection, "reviewing the account"
includes activities related to account maintenance,
monitoring, credit line increases, and account upgrades

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and enhancements.
(2) A subsidiary, affiliate, agent, assignee, or
prospective assignee of a person to whom access has been
granted under subsection (f) of this Section for purposes
of facilitating the extension of credit or other
permissible use.
(3) Any state or local agency, law enforcement agency,
trial court, or private collection agency acting pursuant
to a court order, warrant, or subpoena.
(4) A child support agency acting pursuant to Title
IV-D of the Social Security Act.
(5) The State or its agents or assigns acting to
investigate fraud.
(6) The Department of Revenue or its agents or assigns
acting to investigate or collect delinquent taxes or unpaid
court orders or to fulfill any of its other statutory
responsibilities.
(7) The use of credit information for the purposes of
prescreening as provided for by the federal Fair Credit
Reporting Act.
(8) Any person or entity administering a credit file
monitoring subscription or similar service to which the
consumer has subscribed.
(9) Any person or entity for the purpose of providing a
consumer with a copy of his or her credit report or score
upon the consumer's request.

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(10) Any person using the information in connection
with the underwriting of insurance.
(n-5) A consumer reporting agency may not impose a charge
on a consumer for placing a freeze, removing a freeze, or
temporarily lifting a freeze.
(o) If a security freeze is in place, a consumer reporting
agency shall not change any of the following official
information in a credit report without sending a written
confirmation of the change to the consumer within 30 days of
the change being posted to the consumer's file: (i) name, (ii)
date of birth, (iii) Social Security number, and (iv) address.
Written confirmation is not required for technical
modifications of a consumer's official information, including
name and street abbreviations, complete spellings, or
transposition of numbers or letters. In the case of an address
change, the written confirmation shall be sent to both the new
address and to the former address.
(p) The following entities are not required to place a
security freeze in a consumer report, however, pursuant to
paragraph (3) of this subsection, a consumer reporting agency
acting as a reseller shall honor any security freeze placed on
a consumer credit report by another consumer reporting agency:
(1) A check services or fraud prevention services
company, which issues reports on incidents of fraud or
authorizations for the purpose of approving or processing
negotiable instruments, electronic funds transfers, or

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similar methods of payment.
(2) A deposit account information service company,
which issues reports regarding account closures due to
fraud, substantial overdrafts, ATM abuse, or similar
negative information regarding a consumer to inquiring
banks or other financial institutions for use only in
reviewing a consumer request for a deposit account at the
inquiring bank or financial institution.
(3) A consumer reporting agency that:
(A) acts only to resell credit information by
assembling and merging information contained in a
database of one or more consumer reporting agencies;
and
(B) does not maintain a permanent database of
credit information from which new credit reports are
produced.
(q) For purposes of this Section:
"Credit file" has the same meaning as provided for "file"
in 15 U.S.C. 1681a(g).
"Credit report" has the same meaning as "consumer report",
as ascribed to it in 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1681a(d).
"Consumer reporting agency" has the meaning ascribed to it
in 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1681a(f).
"Security freeze" means a notice placed in a consumer's
credit report, at the request of the consumer and subject to
certain exceptions, that prohibits the consumer reporting

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agency from releasing the consumer's credit report or score
relating to an extension of credit, without the express
authorization of the consumer.
"Extension of credit" does not include an increase in an
existing open-end credit plan, as defined in Regulation Z of
the Federal Reserve System (12 C.F.R. 226.2), or any change to
or review of an existing credit account.
"Proper authority" means documentation that shows that a
parent, guardian, or agent has authority to act on behalf of a
minor or person with a disability. "Proper authority" includes
(1) an order issued by a court of law that shows that a
guardian has authority to act on behalf of a minor or person
with a disability, (2) a written, notarized statement signed by
a parent that expressly describes the authority of the parent
to act on behalf of the minor, or (3) a durable power of
attorney that complies with the Illinois Power of Attorney Act.
"Proper identification" means information generally deemed
sufficient to identify a person. Only if the consumer is unable
to reasonably identify himself or herself with the information
described above, may a consumer reporting agency require
additional information concerning the consumer's employment
and personal or family history in order to verify his or her
identity.
(r) Any person who violates this Section commits an
unlawful practice within the meaning of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; 99-373, eff. 1-1-16;

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99-642, eff. 7-28-16; 100-589, eff. 6-8-18.)