Louise Slaughter: “Mr. Speaker, this bill purports to improve the Bankruptcy Code by ensuring fairness for debtors and creditors.…”

“Mr. Speaker, this bill purports to improve the Bankruptcy Code by ensuring fairness for debtors and creditors. Unfortunately, this bill envisions fairness as choosing credit card companies over people in dire financial situations. This bill attempts to solve a complex problem with an oversimplified, one-size-fits-all solution when the problem really requires a sophisticated solution. The rhetoric around H.R. 975 paints a vivid picture of scheming people running up huge debts, buying extravagant houses and expensive cars just before they run to a local bankruptcy court to avoid paying their bills, but the reality is that only 3 percent of the people who file for bankruptcy are these kinds of cheaters. In order to stop the 3 percent who abuse the system, the bill takes the dramatic sweeping step of harming the 97 percent of people who are forced to seek protection under the Bankruptcy Code because of illnesses, unemployment or divorce. In fact, nearly half the people who file for bankruptcy protection do so because of medical bills and the financial consequences of illness or injury.”