Bill Text: NY A05294 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Prohibits a consumer reporting agency or lender from using the credit scores of members of an individual's social network to determine the credit worthiness of such individual.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 26-3)

Status: (Passed) 2019-11-25 - signed chap.540 [A05294 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A05294-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          5294
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 8, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. CRESPO -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. ARROYO,
          BARRON, COLTON, COOK, DAVILA, DICKENS,  EPSTEIN,  HEVESI,  KIM,  McDO-
          NOUGH,  MONTESANO,  MOSLEY,  PICHARDO, RAIA, RAMOS, RIVERA, RODRIGUEZ,
          SIMON, WALLACE, WEPRIN, WRIGHT  --  read  once  and  referred  to  the
          Committee on Consumer Affairs and Protection
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  general  business  law  and the banking law, in
          relation to prohibiting a consumer reporting  agency  or  lender  from
          using  certain information to determine an individual's credit worthi-
          ness
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1.  Section  380-a  of the general business law is amended by
     2  adding a new subdivision (u) to read as follows:
     3    (u) The term "members of a consumer's social network" means a group of
     4  individuals authorized by a consumer to be part of  his  or  her  social
     5  media communications and network.
     6    §  2. Section 380-j of the general business law is amended by adding a
     7  new subdivision (h) to read as follows:
     8    (h) No consumer reporting agency shall collect, evaluate,  report,  or
     9  maintain  in the file on a consumer the credit worthiness, credit stand-
    10  ing or credit capacity of members of the consumer's social  network  for
    11  purposes of determining the credit worthiness of the consumer; the aver-
    12  age  credit worthiness, credit standing or credit capacity of members of
    13  the consumer's social network; or  any  group  score  that  is  not  the
    14  consumer's  own  credit  worthiness, credit standing or credit capacity.
    15  The provisions of this subdivision shall be enforced concurrently by the
    16  superintendent of financial services and the director of the division of
    17  consumer protection and each shall utilize their consumer complaint  and
    18  assistance hotlines to document complaints by consumers who believe that
    19  group  credit  ratings  of  their social media network are being used to
    20  deny them credit.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02186-01-9

        A. 5294                             2
     1    § 3. Section 2 of the banking law is amended by adding a new  subdivi-
     2  sion 31 to read as follows:
     3    31.  Members  of  a  borrower's social network. The term "members of a
     4  borrower's social network" means a group of individuals authorized by  a
     5  borrower  to  be  part  of  his  or  her social media communications and
     6  network.
     7    § 4. Section 352 of the banking law is amended by adding a  new  sixth
     8  undesignated paragraph to read as follows:
     9    No licensee shall collect, evaluate, report or maintain in the file on
    10  a  borrower the credit worthiness, credit standing or credit capacity of
    11  members of the borrower's social network for purposes of determining the
    12  credit worthiness of the borrower; the average credit worthiness, credit
    13  standing or credit capacity of members of the borrower's social network;
    14  or any group score that is not the  borrower's  own  credit  worthiness,
    15  credit  standing  or credit capacity.   The provisions of this paragraph
    16  shall be enforced concurrently by the superintendent and the director of
    17  the division of consumer protection and each shall utilize their consum-
    18  er complaint and assistance hotlines to document complaints by borrowers
    19  who believe that group credit ratings of their social media network  are
    20  being used to deny them credit. The superintendent shall ensure that the
    21  credit  scoring  formulas filed with the department do not contain vari-
    22  ables which account for internet viewing history as part of that formula
    23  by asking the licensee to certify to that fact.
    24    § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
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