Senate Bill No. 538
(By Senators Minard and Deem)
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[Introduced February 15, 1999;
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend article six, chapter forty-six-a of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
one hundred eleven, relating to general consumer protection;
and providing that college students may not be sued for
credit card debts until six months after graduation or
threatened with not graduating because of a civil action or
judgment for a credit card debt.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article six, chapter forty-six-a of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section one
hundred eleven, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 6. GENERAL CONSUMER PROTECTION.
§46A-6-111. Action for credit card debt of college students
prohibited.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
contrary, no action by a creditor for a debt owed on a credit
card transaction by a person who is a full-time student, either
undergraduate or graduate, at any college or university located
in this state, may be brought while that person is a full-time
student. An action may be brought no sooner than six months
after that person has graduated or ceased to be a full-time
student.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
contrary with respect to civil actions and judgments obtained by
a creditor in an action for a debt owed on a credit card
transaction by a person who is a full-time student, either
undergraduate or graduate, at any college or university located
in this state
, a judgment may not be enforced while
that person
is a full-time student.
(c) When a person who is a full-time student, either
undergraduate or graduate, at any college or university located
in this state
,
has been sued or has a judgment rendered against
that person for a debt owed on a credit card, the person may not
be threatened with, or denied the right to graduate, by the
college or university administration because of the indebtedness or judgment.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that college
students may not be sued for credit card debts unit six months
after graduation or threatened with not graduating because of a
civil action or judgment for a credit card debt.
Section 111 is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.