Report Discusses Importance of Reforms to Nation’s Credit Reporting Industry

A new report from Dēmos contends that public standards for credit reporting need to be reformed to protect consumers and promote economic opportunity and security. Discrediting America: The Urgent Need to Reform the Nation’s Credit Reporting Industry finds that credit reports and scores not only include inaccurate or irrelevant information, but are increasingly adopted for other uses, such as employment, where a job candidate can be turned down for having bad credit. The report’s recommendations include reducing the amount of erroneous information in credit reports, eliminating information that has little relevance to future likelihood of repaying debt, and ensuring that Americans seeking employment, utility services or health care are not penalized for their credit histories.