Jerry Nadler: “I wanted to discuss a few things about this bill: first, the alleged need for it. And I want to stress that even though…”

“I wanted to discuss a few things about this bill: first, the alleged need for it. And I want to stress that even though I am going to say there is no necessity for this bill, the Democratic substitute answers the nonexisting problem which they posit. We are told the need for this bill is that the American people, especially the American middle class, are a bunch of deadbeats, that there is a huge increase in bankruptcy filings, which there is, and that the reason for this huge increase in bankruptcy filings is that we have changed social mores. There is no more stigma associated with bankruptcy. People used to be very reluctant to declare bankruptcy. Now they do it as a financial planning instrument, and they are deadbeats, and, therefore, we have got to crack down on it because the credit card companies are not making enough money. What is the truth of the matter? The truth is that is nonsense. Sure there are a lot more bankruptcy filings, but why? The figures tell a very different story. First of all, if it were true that the reason for the increase in bankruptcy filings were a change in social mores where people are more easily going to bankruptcies, then people would be going bankrupt when they are less in debt, when they are less in trouble. The figures say differently. In 1983, before the surge in bankruptcy filings started, the average person who filed for bankruptcy had debts equal to 74 percent of his income.”