[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9966 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9966
To direct the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Bureau
of Consumer Financial Protection to establish the Interagency Task
Force on Coerced Debt, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 11, 2024
Mr. Gottheimer (for himself, Mrs. Houchin, Ms. Pettersen, Mrs. Wagner,
Ms. Williams of Georgia, and Mr. Lawler) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Bureau
of Consumer Financial Protection to establish the Interagency Task
Force on Coerced Debt, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Task Force to End Financial Abuse
Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) Economic abuse is a serious issue impacting vulnerable
populations.
(2) Economic abuse occurs in 99 percent of abusive
relationships and is the number 1 reason victims of abuse stay
in or return to abusive relationships.
(3) Coerced debt is a form of economic abuse and an avenue
for abusers to limit the economic independence of an
individual.
(4) Coerced debt occurs when an abuser utilizes coercive
control or identity theft to incur debt in the name of an
individual.
(5) Coerced debt can occur via threat, force, or fraud in
the context of ongoing domestic abuse, which can be physical,
emotional, or financial.
(6) Coerced debt can subject a survivor to destroyed
credit, substantial payment expectations, debt collection, and
even bankruptcy.
(7) Addressing coerced debt requires a coordinated approach
across Federal, State, and local agencies to ensure
comprehensive support and protection for survivors.
(8) There is a need for an interagency task force to
develop and implement strategies to address coerced debt and
its impact on survivors.
SEC. 3. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE ON COERCED DEBT.
(a) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this section, the Secretary of the Treasury and the
Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall establish
a task force to be known as the Interagency Task Force on Coerced Debt
(in this section referred to as the ``Task Force'').
(b) Composition of the Task Force.--
(1) Co-chairs.--The Secretary of the Treasury and the
Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, or
designees, shall serve as co-chairs of the Task Force.
(2) Members.--The Task Force shall be composed of--
(A) the Secretary of Health and Human Services, or
a designee;
(B) the Director of the Office of Family Violence
Prevention and Services, or a designee;
(C) the Director of the Office on Women's Health,
or a designee;
(D) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development,
or a designee;
(E) the Attorney General, or a designee;
(F) the Director of the Office on Violence Against
Women, or a designee;
(G) the Chairperson of the Federal Trade
Commission, or a designee; and
(H) representatives, appointed by the President,
from--
(i) a national domestic violence advocacy
organization;
(ii) a financial institution;
(iii) a credit reporting agency; and
(iv) a nonprofit organization that provides
financial literacy and credit counseling
services.
(c) Duties.--The Task Force shall--
(1) define the term ``coerced debt'';
(2) identify the scope and impact of coerced debt on
domestic violence survivors, including the prevalence of
coerced debt and the financial, legal, and social consequences
of coerced debt for domestic violence survivors;
(3) facilitate interagency collaboration and information
sharing to ensure a coordinated response to coerced debt,
including training for law enforcement, social service
providers, and financial institutions with respect to
identifying and addressing coerced debt;
(4) engage with stakeholders, including domestic violence
survivors, advocacy organizations, and financial institutions
to inform the development of policies and practices to address
coerced debt; and
(5) provide recommendations for legislative and regulatory
changes to address coerced debt, including Federal legislative
proposals to protect domestic violence survivors from coerced
debt.
(d) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date on which all the
members of the Task Force have been appointed, the Task Force shall
publish on a public website and submit to the Committee on Financial
Services of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate, the Committee on the
Judiciary of the House of Representatives, the Committee on the
Judiciary of the Senate, and any other committee of the Congress that
the Task Force determines appropriate a report that contains the
findings and recommendations required under subsection (c).
(e) Sunset.--The Task Force shall terminate on the date that is 60
days after the date of the submission to the Congress of the report
required under subsection (d).
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