_____________ bill NO. _____________

INTRODUCED BY _________________________________________________

By Request of the ****

A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT GENERALLY REVISING COLLECTION AGENCY LAWS; LIMITING THE AMOUNT OF MONEY A COLLECTION AGENCY MAY COLLECT ON A DEBT; LIMITING THE AMOUNT OF TIME A COLLECTION AGENCY MAY COLLECT ON A DEBT; PROVIDING AN APPROPRIATION; AMENDING SECTION 30-14-2013, MCA; and PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE date and AN APPLICABILITY DATE."

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:

Section 1. Section 30-14-2013, MCA, is amended to read:

"30-14-2013. Prohibited practices. (1) A credit counseling service may not:

(a) purchase any debt or obligation of a consumer;

(b) lend money or provide credit to a consumer;

(c) obtain a mortgage or other security interest in any property of a consumer;

(d) operate as a collection agency;

(e) structure a debt management plan in a way that at the debt management plan's conclusion any debts of the consumer that are subject to the debt management plan are not fully amortized;

(f) charge for or provide credit insurance;

(g) cause or attempt to cause a consumer to waive or forego any right or benefit that the consumer has under the provisions of this part; or

(h) operate in this state without a license.

(2) (a) A credit counseling service may not advertise its services in any manner in this state without first being licensed by the department.

(b) A credit counseling service or any person on a credit counseling service's behalf may not misrepresent any material fact or make a false promise intended to induce a consumer into entering a debt management plan.

(3) (a) A collection agency may not collect on a debt in excess of:

(i) collecting 150% of the original value of the debt; or

(ii) a period of 10 years.

(b) Transferring a debt to another collection agency or another person or entity does not reset the limits established in subsection (3)(a)."

NEW SECTION. Section 2. Appropriation. There is appropriated $1 from the general fund to the office of consumer protection for the biennium beginning July 1, 2021, for the purposes of [section 1(3)].

NEW SECTION. Section 3. Effective date. [This act] is effective on passage and approval.

NEW SECTION. Section 4. Applicability. [This act] applies to debts transferred to a debt collection agency on or after [the effective date of this act].