Joe Crowley: “first I want to take this opportunity to thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Oxley) and the gentleman from Massachusetts…”

“first I want to take this opportunity to thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Oxley) and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Frank), as well as the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Bachus) and the gentleman from Vermont (Mr. Sanders), for their work together in what I believe is truly a bipartisan effort and manner to craft, in my opinion, a well-balanced bill, understanding that there is a deadline looming in the not-too-distant future as pertains to many of these issues. This bill ensures the continued flow of credit for American consumers by allowing for the permanent protection of credit availability. Our economy and our credit-granting industry should not have to continually look over its shoulder at potentially burdensome regulations, regulations that could hinder the availability of credit for millions of Americans. But this legislation is not just about protecting consumer credit options. It is about protecting consumers' identity and their health information. This bill strengthens the rules to protect consumers from identity theft. The Committee on Financial Services, which I am a member of, heard from a woman who originally lived in my district, someone who I grew up just seven doors away from. Her name was Maureen Sullivan. Now it is Maureen Mitchell. She grew up in Woodside, Queens, New York, who was a victim herself, and her husband, of identity theft. It cost her not only money but it cost her an enormous amount of time, not to mention mental anguish.”