The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.North Carolina bans commercial debt settlement services and classifies violations as unfair trade practices
Last action · April 28, 2025: Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate (Senate action)Sponsors: Julia Howard and 8 others
Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.
What This Bill Would Do
House Bill 734 prohibits and debt settlement services across North Carolina, making unauthorized debt adjustment a Class 2 misdemeanor and an . The measure takes effect on July 1, 2025, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.
Debtors entering into commercial debt settlement contracts see those agreements declared legally void, while companies offering such services face civil penalties, receivership actions, and potential criminal misdemeanor charges.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
North Carolina debtors
Debtors are prohibited from utilizing commercial debt settlement services, see existing debt settlement contracts rendered void, and gain expanded civil remedies against unauthorized providers.
Debt settlement companies
Entities engaging in debt adjusting or settlement face criminal misdemeanor charges, injunctions, civil penalties, and the voiding of their contracts.
Credit counseling organizations
Non-profit credit counseling and debt management providers must comply with specific accreditation, fee limits, and quarterly accounting requirements to maintain their exemption status.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this bill ban all credit counseling and debt management help?
Can regular attorneys still help clients restructure debts?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Follow the record
Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently passed chamber. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Law.
Procedural history
15 actions- Apr 28, 2025SenateRef To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate
- Apr 28, 2025SenatePassed 1st Reading
- Apr 28, 2025SenateRegular Message Received From House
- Apr 17, 2025HouseRegular Message Sent To Senate
- Apr 16, 2025HousePassed 3rd Reading
- Apr 16, 2025HousePassed 2nd Reading
Show 9 earlier actions
- Apr 15, 2025HousePlaced On Cal For 04/16/2025
- Apr 15, 2025HouseCal Pursuant Rule 36(b)
- Apr 15, 2025HouseReptd Fav
- Apr 15, 2025HouseRe-ref Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
- Apr 15, 2025HouseReptd Fav
- Apr 10, 2025HouseSerial Referral To Finance Stricken
- Apr 3, 2025HouseRef to the Com on Judiciary 1, if favorable, Finance, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
- Apr 3, 2025HousePassed 1st Reading
- Apr 2, 2025HouseIntroducedFiled
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Voting Record
Second Reading
Total
115
- Yes
- 109
- No
- 0
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 6
- Abstain
- 0
How they voted (115)
91 more members
Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Recodification to Chapter 75
The bill shifts debt adjustment provisions from Chapter 14 (criminal statutes) to Chapter 75 (monopoly, trusts, and consumer protection), aligning violations directly with unfair trade practices.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.ncleg.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz35Current news / social attention level
Publisher tools