A pair of bills have been introduced in Washington, D.C., that seek to implement temporary restrictions on how debts are collected in the District now that it is ending the pandemic emergency declaration that was enacted last year. The bills were authored by Phil Mendelson, the chairman of the D.C. Council, and Karl Racine, the Attorney General of Washington, D.C., and are precursors to additional legislation that is coming “in the near future” that will propose “permanent updates to modernize the District’s debt collection laws in the long-term,” according to a release announcing the introduction of the temporary bills.
The two bills are essentially the same, save for one difference — the duration of their effective period. The emergency bill would remain in effect for no longer than 90 days if it were to be enacted, while the temporary bill would remain in effect for 225 days after it takes effect.
Both bills seek to enact additional consumer protections against what the authors of the proposed legislation deem to be abusive debt collection practices at a time when individuals are “struggling to get back on their feet” following the COVID-19 pandemic and are “fac[ing] a wave of aggressive debt collection activity,” said Racine, in a statement. “Our current debt collection law was passed 50 years ago and must be updated to address modern forms of communication and combat abusive debt collection practices.”
If enacted, collectors would be limited to making three phone calls in a seven-day period, while also addressing communications made via email and text messaging. The bill would also establish that its provisions apply to debt buyers as well as collectors. As well, partial payments or written or oral affirmations of a debt would not restart or extend the statute of limitations. Collectors must also be in possession of the following information before initiating any collection activity:
- Documentation of the name of the original creditor as well as the name of the current creditor or owner
- The debtor’s last account number with the original creditor
- A copy of the signed contract, application, or other documents that provide evidence of the consumer’s liability
- The date that the debt was incurred
- The date and amount of last payment
- An itemized accounting of the claim to be owed
Collectors would also be required to provide this information to consumers in writing within five days after the initial communication.
