Fred Weinberg

I contacted Frederic I. Weinberg, Esquire, of Gordon & Weinberg, P.C., and the author of The National List white paper on PA Debt Collection Laws, to ask his opinion regarding the impact of the Bill. He replied: 

There are actually two House Bills and one Senate Bill that were introduced this summer in PA that would amend the Pennsylvania Fair Credit Extension Uniformity Act, which currently adopts and mirrors the FDCPA. –  These are not new laws and have not gone to committee yet (if they ever do).  However, they are important to keep an eye on.

One deals with creditors only and the other two (House and Senate that mirror each other) deal with creditors and debt collectors. The language is troublesome in that that there would be no clear way to comply as the Bills are currently written.

House Bill HB596 would require creditors to 1. Verify the Identity of the consumer, and 2. Assure that the national credit bureaus are provided with accurate information concerning each consumer. Obviously, all creditors should be complying with this standard, and it should be of little concern.

House Bill HB1633 and Senate Bill SB1053 are troubling.  These would subject creditors and debt collectors to a violation of the Act if they 1. Fail to provide a consumer with written verification of the debt or judgment, together with the required 1692g(a) disclosure of the FDCPA, and 2. Fail to provide a consumer with the date that the applicable statute of limitations has expired on the debt or judgment, or fail to provide written notice of the fact that the judgment is no longer legally enforceable.  As you can see, these bills are in-artfully drafted, do not take into consideration a myriad of factors that could determine validation of the debt or statute of limitations, and seem to indicate that a notice of the expiration of the statute of limitations or expiration of the judgment must be given on every account.

The National List wants to keep our readers up-to-date on the proposed new regulations in PA and elsewhere. If you have new legislation to report in your state, please feel free to contact us at info@nationallist.com. 

Marti Lythgoe, NL Editor, with Frederic I. Weinberg, Esquire, Gordon & Weinberg, P.C., Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Colorado

Categories: Debt Collection, Guest Blogs, NL Insider

Tags: creditors, debt collection agencies, debt collector disclosure, PA debt collection laws, statute of limitations on debt, third party debt collectors