Credit Access and Inclusion Act

Full Title:
Credit Access and Inclusion Act of 2025

Summary#

This bill adds a new subsection (f) to section 623 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act. It allows a person or the Department of Housing and Urban Development to provide to consumer reporting agencies information about how a consumer pays for: lease agreements for a dwelling (including HUD-subsidized leases), and contracts for utility or telecommunications services. The bill defines "energy utility firm" and "utility or telecommunication firm." It says usage details may be shared only to the extent they relate to payment or service terms (for example deposits, discounts, or interruption and termination conditions). An energy utility firm may not report a balance as late if the consumer is on a payment plan and is meeting that plan. A consumer may opt out of this reporting by sending a written request to the entity that furnishes the information. The bill also changes the limitation on liability provision in section 623(c) to include this new subsection (f). Finally, the Comptroller General must report to Congress within 2 years on the impact of this reporting on consumers and analyze how reporting consumer cash flow data affects credit scores.

What it means for you#

  • Landlords, HUD, utility companies, and telecom companies could send information about rent, utility, and telecom payments to credit-reporting agencies.
  • Information about how consumers use services can be reported only when it relates to payments or service terms.
  • If you have an energy utility payment plan and are meeting the plan, the utility may not report your balance as late.
  • You can ask the company that sends the information to stop by sending a written opt-out request.
  • The bill requires a government report within 2 years on the effects of these reporting changes.

Expenses#

No publicly available information on estimated costs or budget effects is included in the bill text. The bill does require a report from the Comptroller General, but it does not include cost estimates in the provided text.

Proponents' View#

No publicly available information.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information.