S. 1550 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, May 1, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryExpands interest rate protections for active-duty troops
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act already caps interest rates at 6% for servicemembers on debts they took on before entering active duty. This bill makes that protection stronger. It requires creditors to apply the cap to all debts a servicemember has with them, not just the ones mentioned in paperwork. It also requires creditors to give servicemembers easy ways to submit the required documentation, and it mandates that servicemembers get training on financial protections and written notice of their SCRA benefits when they first enter service.
How it affects you
If you're on active duty, this directly affects you. You'll get clearer information upfront about your interest rate protections, and creditors will have to apply those protections to all your debts with them, not make you fight for each one separately. Reserve members will also get notice when they're mobilized or ordered to active duty for more than 30 days.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, May 1, 2025)
Improving SCRA Benefit Utilization Act of 2025
This bill expands interest rate protections under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) and requires expanded training for and outreach to servicemembers regarding financial literacy and SCRA protections.
The SCRA caps the maximum interest charged on any debt incurred by a servicemember prior to entering active duty at 6% annually if the servicemember's ability to pay is materially affected by active-duty status; servicemembers must provide notice and other documentation to creditors to receive this cap.
The bill requires creditors to apply this cap to all of a servicemember’s obligations or liabilities with that creditor, regardless of whether a certain obligation or liability was specifically mentioned in the required notice provided by the member to invoke SCRA rights. Further, the bill requires creditors to provide all necessary mechanisms to ensure a servicemember is able to submit any required documentation.
The bill also requires that the financial literacy training program provided to servicemembers include information about consumer financial protections afforded to such members and their dependents, including protections regarding interest rate limits under the SCRA.
Additionally, the bill requires the military department concerned to provide written notice of benefits under the SCRA to servicemembers at the time they first enter military service and, for members of the reserve components, at the time they first enter service in the reserves and at any time when they are mobilized or ordered to active duty for more than 30 days.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 1550
A BILL
Improving SCRA Benefit Utilization Act of 2025
Sponsor: Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) · Introduced May 1, 2025 · Armed Forces and National Security · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action May 1, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.”
Sections
Sections · 4
- Sec. 1Short titleNo change
- Sec. 2Financial literacy training regarding the Servicemembers Civil Relief ActNo change
- Sec. 3Notification of benefits under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to servicemembers called or ordered to active duty or to active serviceNo change
- Sec. 4Financial institution obligation to apply maximum rate of interest on all servicemember debts incurred before military serviceNo change