The Political Scene

Committee OKs

Credit Card Bill

Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney has announced that the House Financial Services Committee passed her Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights (H.R. 627) last Wednesday, Apr. 22, by a vote of 48 to 19:

"This landmark legislation helps level the playing field between cardholders and card companies," said Maloney. "For too long the relationship has been one-sided; but markets function best when all sides know what they're getting into—and these deceptive practices need to be stopped. The Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights brings more transparency to the contractual relationship and give consumers the tools they need to responsibly manage their own credit."

The legislation, which must pass the full House and Senate and be signed into law by the president, aims to provide crucial protections against unfair, but unfortunately common, credit card practices.

Among the provisions in the bill include the following:

• preventing card companies from unfairly increasing interest rates on existing card balances—retroactive increases are permitted only if a cardholder is more than 30 days late, if a pre-agreed promotional rate expires, if the rate adjusts as part of a variable rate, or if the cardholder fails to comply with a workout agreement.

• requiring card companies to give 45 days notice of all interest rate increases or significant contract changes (e.g. fees) so consumers can pay off their balances and shop for a better deal.

• requiring companies to let consumers set their own fixed credit limit.

• preventing companies from charging "over-the-limit" fees when a cardholder has set a limit, or when a pre-authorized credit "hold" pushes a consumer over their limit.

• limiting (to three) the number of over-the-limit fees companies can charge for the same transaction - some issuers now charge virtually unlimited fees for a single limit violation.

• ending unfair "double cycle" billing—card companies couldn't charge interest on debt consumers have already paid on time.

• provided that a cardholder pays on time and in full, the bill would prevent card companies from piling additional fees on balances consisting solely of left-over interest. .

• prohibiting card companies from charging a fee for payments received over the phone or via the Internet.

• banning the practice of crediting payments to a cardholder's lowest interest rate balances first, which make it impossible for many to repay highrate debt.

• requiring payments made in excess of the minimum to be allocated proportionally or to the balance with the highest interest rate.

• requiring card companies to mail billing statements 21 calendar days before the due date (up from the current 14 days), and to credit as "on time" payments made before 5 p.m. local time on the due date.

• extending due date to next business day for mailed payments when the due date falls on a day a card company does not accept or receive mail (i.e. Sundays and holidays).

• establishing standard definitions of terms like "fixed rate" and "prime rate" so companies can't mislead or deceive consumers in marketing and advertising.

• giving consumers who are preapproved for a card the right to reject that card prior to activation without negatively affecting their credit scores.

• prohibiting issuers of sub-prime cards (where total yearly fixed fees exceed 25 percent of the credit limit) from charging those fees to the card itself; and,

• prohibiting card companies from knowingly issuing cards to individuals under 18 who are not emancipated minors.

Breezy Pt. Beach

Clubs Stay Open

Two cornerstone community clubs in Breezy Point that have provided thousands of residents in Brooklyn and Queens with access to the beach for decades will remain open for business, according to an agreement announced by U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, Rep. Anthony Weiner and park officials last Friday, Apr. 24.

The National Park Service (NPS) and Tom August, the operator of the Silver Gull Beach Club and the Breezy Point Surf Club, have reached a new three-year agreement to prevent the clubs from shutting down. Silver Gull will now be able to operate full time starting this June.

Since 1973, the Breezy Point Beach clubs have operated on national park land by renewing a "special use permit" each year. However in 2007, the Office of the Inspector General issued an audit that raised questions about NPS' ability to grant the beach clubs authority to operate under special use permit.

In 2008, after months of negotiations between NPS and the clubs' operator, discussions subsequently stalled. Leaders at Silver Gull reportedly worried that the lack of a guaranteed long-term contract placed the future of the club in jeopardy; NPS worried about meeting the requirements that the Department of the Interior's Inspector General audit mandated. This led to an impasse that lasted nearly six months.

Schumer and Weiner pointed out in 2008 letters to NPS the clubs' contributions to the local community, including providing summer jobs for youth and attracting tourists. The public officials also met with NPS officials and the club operator to help overcome the impasse. New talks began and an agreement was reached.

"Keeping Silver Gull Beach Club and Breezy Point Surf Club open is a real win for the many Queens and Brooklyn families who flock there to enjoy the sun, the pool and the surf during New York's dog days of summer," Schumer said.

Weiner added, "For 45 years, gen- erations of families have flocked to Silver Gull to enjoy the beach, swim in the pools, and take part in community events. Preserving this jewel in the middle of our urban jungle will help the local economy thrive and is a major win for everyone."

Conservatives Call

For An MTA Audit

The New York State Conservative Party recently issued a memo to members of the state legislature calling for full accounting by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority before any bailout can be considered.

"The [party] firmly believes that the people who use mass transit in New York City should not be required to pay any increase in transit fares until there is a full accounting of why the MTA is billions of dollars short," the memo stated. "We firmly believe that the state must not consider bailing out the MTA with tolls on the East River and Harlem river or the commuter tax and certainly not a 0.33 percent payroll tax in the 12 metropolitan counties."

The memorandum charged that the MTA has mismanaged its properties for years and employes too many individuals who are overpaid. Furthermore, the party stated that too many empty buses and subway cars on operated along routes "that should be eliminated."

Conservatives also charged that the authority "does nothing to stop the union demands for gold-plated benefits."

"The question that must be answered before any new increase in revenues for the MTA can be considered is 'Why are you billions of dollars short?'" the memo added. "New Yorkers have been forced to pay and then to pay more, yet [the MTA is] billions of dollars short."

Pol: Oust Con Ed Chief After Blast

After a Floral Park, Queens resident was killed in a gas leak explosion, City Council Member Eric Gioia called for the resignation or firing of Con Edison CEO Kevin Burke, noting that the accident was the third deadly explosion involving the utility company in two years.

Ghanwatti Boodram was killed last Friday, Apr. 24, when a gas leak caused her house to explode in Floral Park, Queens. This follows the Thanksgiving 2007 gas explosion that killed Kunta Oza of Sunnyside, and the July 2007 Lexington Ave. steam pipe explosion.

"Kevin Burke should resign or be fired by his shareholders," said Councilman Gioia. "Homes and streets should not be exploding—period. Three deadly explosions within two years is an outrage, and demands accountability at the highest levels. That starts with CEO Kevin Burke. New Yorkers pay some of the highest utility rates in the country and the least they should be able to expect is that when there is a gas leak they will be safe and protected. Con Ed clearly does not understand the special role it plays in New York, and that it is a failure of Kevin Burke."

On Friday, an explosion at 80-50 260th Street in Floral Park, Queens destroyed a home and spread a fire to neighboring homes, causing them to be evacuated. The explosion took the life of Boodram and injured several others. However, according to published reports, Con Ed measured an extremely high gas reading of 80 percent in a manhole on the Boodram's street, and yet for 35 minutes failed to evacuate the neighborhood.

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