Credit

Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., has filed a Congressional Review Act resolution to repeal the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's rule barring medical debt from credit reports.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, now led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, agreed to temporarily halt enforcement and litigation over its medical debt rule, handing the banking industry an immediate reprieve.

Equifax agreed to resolve allegations that it failed to conduct proper investigations of consumer disputes, ignored evidence and allowed previously deleted inaccuracies to be reinstated on credit reports. The credit reporting bureau also shared inaccurate credit scores and data about consumers with lenders.

The removal of the fourth-quarter implementation date also impacts the planned addition of a bi-merge report option.

Without admitting wrongdoing, Equifax agreed to pay $725,000 because of a three-week error which lowered credit scores for 77,000 New Yorkers.

Two trade groups filed a lawsuit against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau claiming it exceeded its authority and ignored the legislative history on medical debts.

Experian said it has gone "above and beyond the law" to investigate consumer disputes related to the accuracy of information.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule that will remove medical  bills from credit reports to end what the bureau called "coercive debt collection practices."

A key update of secondary market scores is set to reach the finish line in 2025 but the outlook for whether its current trajectory will continue is mixed.

Residents of Minnesota have the highest average credit score, at 726, beating the national average of 701.