Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), a Democrat, and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (FL-13), a Republican representing Florida, introduced legislation that would immediately cap credit card interest rates at 10%. U.S. Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT), an independent representing Vermont, and Josh Hawley (R-MO), a Republican representing Missouri, introduced companion legislation last month in the Senate.

 

According to the congress members, while banks borrow at the federal interest rate of 4.25%, credit card interest rates have nearly doubled over the last decade to 23.8%, allowing credit card companies to reap massive profits while consumers struggle to keep up with debt.

 

“Credit cards with high interest rates regularly trap working people in endless cycles of debt,” said Ocasio-Cortez, who represent parts of The Bronx and Queens, “At a time when families are struggling to make ends meet, we cannot allow big banks to shake down our communities for profit.”

 

She continued, “During his campaign, President Trump pledged to cap credit card interest rates at 10%. We’re making that pledge more than a talking point by introducing legislation to protect working people from remaining trapped under mountains of debt.”

 

For her part, Luna said, “I’m proud to be the bipartisan co-lead to this legislation. For too long, credit card companies have abused working class Americans with absurd interest rates, trapping them in an almost insurmountable amount of debt. We need a fair solution – and that means getting rid of the status quo and putting a reasonable cap on interest rates.”

 

The full bill text is available here.

 

In 2019, Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders introduced the Loan Shark Prevention Act to impose a 15% federal cap on interest rates.