Gottheimer bill targets credit report reseller errors

Representatives Josh Gottheimer (NJ-05) and Mike Lawler (NY-17) have introduced a bipartisan bill that would require credit report resellers to follow reasonable procedures to assure the "maximum possible accuracy" of the information they pass on. The bill is called the Fair Credit Reporting Reseller Accuracy Act, H.R. 8141. It would amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act (opens in a new tab) (FCRA).

What is a credit report reseller?

A reseller is a company that buys credit information from other consumer reporting agencies, such as Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, combines it, and sells the result to lenders, landlords, employers and others. A reseller does not keep its own database of consumer files. The FCRA defines the term in section 603.

You may never have heard of the reseller that produced a report about you. A common example is the merged credit report a mortgage lender pulls, which combines your files from all three major bureaus into one document. If the merging goes wrong, for example by mixing in another person's accounts or duplicating a debt, the lender sees a report that is less accurate than any of the bureau files it came from.

What the bill would do

The bill adds a new subsection, labeled "Resellers," to section 607 of the FCRA. It has three parts:

1. An accuracy duty. Before a reseller sends information from a consumer report to an end user or to another reseller, it must follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information about you. That is the same standard the FCRA already uses for consumer reporting agencies generally.
2. A limit on liability. A reseller would not be liable under the FCRA for accurately passing along information it received from another consumer reporting agency. In plain terms, if the reseller copies a bureau's information correctly and the bureau's information is wrong, responsibility points back to the bureau.
3. A definition. "Reseller" keeps the meaning it already has in section 603.

According to the House Financial Services Committee, the bill clarifies resellers' duties under the FCRA and places liability on whoever controls the underlying consumer data.

Why the sponsors say it matters

In announcing the bill in March 2026, the sponsors pointed to the role resellers play in decisions like buying a home, getting a job or getting a loan. Rep. Gottheimer described the bill as a matter of fairness and accountability, saying families should "never be penalized for someone else's mistake."

Where the bill stands

• March 27, 2026: Introduced by Rep. Lawler with Rep. Gottheimer and referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
• June 30, 2026: Approved by the committee by voice vote at a markup.
• September 1, 2026: Reported to the full House with an amendment and placed on the Union Calendar. Reps. Dan Meuser and Ann Wagner were added as cosponsors.

As of this post, we have not found a record of a vote by the full House. The bill would also need to pass the Senate and be signed into law before it takes effect. You can follow its progress on Congress.gov (opens in a new tab).

What this means for you today

The bill is not law yet, and your rights under the FCRA today do not depend on it. If a credit report is wrong, whether it came from one of the major bureaus or from a reseller, you can dispute the error. If you were turned down for a mortgage, loan, apartment or job because of a report, the company that turned you down generally has to tell you which consumer reporting agency supplied it. That tells you where to start.

Keep copies of the report, any denial letter and every dispute you send. Those records show where an error started, which matters even more under a rule that points liability at the source of the data.

If an inaccurate credit report has cost you a loan, a home or a job, talk to us. We can review your report and explain your options under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.