Bill to prohibit blacklisting passes in the Maryland House
On Friday, Mar. 27, the Maryland House of Representatives passed “House Bill 1292 Consumer Protection – Blacklist Prevention”, which prohibits the use of merchant “blacklists” by banks to reduce a customer’s access to credit. The bill received overwhelming support with 132 yeas, 6 nays, and 3 absent. Next, a hearing will be scheduled in mid-April for the Senate Finance Committee. The bill was inspired, in large part, by my efforts to expose American Express’ use of such blacklists.
In my opinion, this is a major step of many in the right direction to prohibit perhaps the most outrageous practice by credit card companies and banks. I commend the Maryland House for making a bold statement of solidarity on this issue and hope that the Senate will do the same in the coming weeks.
Having testified in the first hearing for the bill, I am especially excited to see that at least one state is being proactive to protect its residents from grossly unfair policies. Also, I hope that the legislation and tremendous support of it will encourage you, the consumer, to urge your representatives to draft similar protective legislation.
Greetings! I’m Kevin D. Johnson, a business owner who has recently assumed the role of consumer advocate and internet activist. Atlanta, Georgia is my home.
Upon returning from my wonderful honeymoon in Jamaica in October 2008, I received what I thought was an ordinary American Express bill, but to my surprise it was a disappointing letter informing me that my credit line was reduced by about 65% for a highly suspicious and discriminatory reason. Considering my excellent credit score and pristine payment history, it just didn’t make sense. However, what does make sense are the unfair and insidious policies that I have uncovered when asking why. It is time to change them.
I created this web site to document and share my challenging journey to change what is wrong, unfair, and unjust in the credit card industry. The ultimate goal of this web site is to inform consumers of ways to stand up for themselves against treacherous business practices and to educate consumers about how to improve their credit. Finally, I hope to encourage a more open dialogue with credit card companies about their policies–good and bad.
I am proud to say that this blog's unyielding demand for change led to an important 
Way to go, Kevin!
Posted by: Sharon Barlow | March 30, 2009 at 10:02 AM