Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced a bill Tuesday seeking to cap credit card interest rates at 10 percent.
“Credit card interest rates are out of control. Rates have DOUBLED in recent years. In 2022 alone, credit cards charged Americans $105 billion in interest,” Hawley wrote in a post on the social platform X.
“Today @BernieSanders and I are teaming up to introduce a 10% cap on interest rates – just like @realDonaldTrump proposed,” he continued.
President Trump first said he backed a cap at a September campaign rally.
Hawley and Sanders said credit card interest rates have become “exploitative,” citing a recent Forbes report that found the average credit card interest rate is 28.6 percent, even though banks are able to borrow money from the Federal Reserve at less than 4.5 percent. Their proposed cap would be in effect for five years.
“When large financial institutions charge over 25 percent interest on credit cards, they are not engaged in the business of making credit available. They are engaged in extortion and loan sharking,” Sanders said in a statement.
“We cannot continue to allow big banks to make huge profits ripping off the American people. This legislation will provide working families struggling to pay their bills with desperately needed financial relief.”
