This bill amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to safeguard the credit of United States nationals who have been unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad or held hostage abroad. It specifically prohibits consumer reporting agencies from including any adverse items of information in a consumer report if those items date from the period during which the individual was detained or held hostage. To qualify for this protection, an individual must be a "covered consumer," meaning a U.S. national determined to be unlawfully detained or held hostage abroad by relevant government authorities. The consumer reporting agency must be able to authenticate "detention or hostage documentation" provided by the covered consumer. This documentation certifies their status and the specific time period of their detention or hostage-taking, and must be authenticated by the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs or the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
Finance and Financial Sector
Fair Credit for American Hostages Act of 2025
USA119th CongressS-656| Senate
| Updated: 2/20/2025
This bill amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to safeguard the credit of United States nationals who have been unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad or held hostage abroad. It specifically prohibits consumer reporting agencies from including any adverse items of information in a consumer report if those items date from the period during which the individual was detained or held hostage. To qualify for this protection, an individual must be a "covered consumer," meaning a U.S. national determined to be unlawfully detained or held hostage abroad by relevant government authorities. The consumer reporting agency must be able to authenticate "detention or hostage documentation" provided by the covered consumer. This documentation certifies their status and the specific time period of their detention or hostage-taking, and must be authenticated by the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs or the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell.