Reps. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) teamed up on legislation proposing a 10% cap on credit card interest rates.

“Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) and Representative Anna Paulina Luna (FL-13) introduced legislation that would immediately cap credit card interest rates at 10%. Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) introduced companion legislation last month in the Senate,” a press release from AOC’s office read.

“Credit cards with high interest rates regularly trap working people in endless cycles of debt. At a time when families are struggling to make ends meet, we cannot allow big banks to shake down our communities for profit. During his campaign, President Trump pledged to cap credit card interest rates at 10%. We’re making that pledge more than a talking point by introducing legislation to protect working people from remaining trapped under mountains of debt,” AOC commented.

“I’m proud to be the bipartisan co-lead to this legislation. For too long, credit card companies have abused working class Americans with absurd interest rates, trapping them in an almost insurmountable amount of debt. We need a fair solution – and that means getting rid of the status quo and putting a reasonable cap on interest rates,” Luna said.

Most Americans agree that insane credit card interest rates are PREDATORY and need to stop! I am proudly partnering with @RepAOC, as well as companion bill sponsors @SenHawleyPress and @SenSanders in the Senate, to pass bipartisan legislation capping interest rates at 10 percent,” Luna wrote on X.

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Per AOC:

While banks borrow at the federal interest rate of 4.25%, credit card interest rates have nearly doubled over the last decade to 23.8%, allowing credit card companies to reap massive profits while consumers struggle to keep up with debt.

In 2019, Representative Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduced the Loan Shark Prevention Act to impose a 15% federal cap on interest rates.

“For too long, credit card companies have abused working class Americans with absurd interest rates, trapping them in an almost insurmountable amount of debt. We need a fair solution — and that means getting rid of the status quo and putting a reasonable cap on interest rates,” Luna added.

Florida Politics reports:

The legislation would implement the 10% cap “inclusive of all finance charges,” and further notes that “any fees that are not considered finance charges … may not be used to evade the limitations … and the total sum of such fees may not exceed the total amount of finance charges assessed.”

While the legislation sounds like great news for consumers, the relief won’t exactly be speedy. If enacted, the cap would not take effect until 2031, nearly six years from now.

 

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