WASHINGTON -- Congress voted to amend a bill to increase consumer protection from credit card companies.
Last spring President Obama signed into a law a measure to prevent credit card companies from raising interest rates on existing balances. Banks received a nine month grace period, but moved to quickly raise rates and tack on extra fees ahead of the bill's enactment.
Wednesday Congress voted to speed up the date for the new rules to begin next month. Originally the new rules were set to start on Feb. 22, 2010.
The bill will now be voted on by the Senate. If approved, President Obama would need to sign the bill to make the date change of the bill's enactment official.
