I've always thought it was corrupt and unfair that three unaccountable companies could each control our financial futures. So this is a step in the right direction:
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Monday that it will start supervising the 30 largest firms that make up 94 percent of the industry. That includes the three big credit reporting firms: Equifax Inc., Experian and TransUnion.
This marks the first time that a single government agency will take an active role in policing credit bureaus, according to industry experts. The Fair Credit Reporting Act currently requires them to keep accurate information about consumers. [...]
"It's a wonderful thing for the American public," said Pamela Banks, the senior policy counsel for Consumers Union, the policy arm of Consumer Reports. "Now there's somebody on their side."
Each of the three major credit reporting agencies maintains files on more than 200 million Americans. These reports are filled with a history of loan payments, credit card accounts and other financial details. Past behavior, from late payments to credit-card balances, is used to create a credit score.
Banks said she expects that when people dispute details on their credit reports, credit bureaus will now act more quickly to fix any problems. "They won't want the CFPB breathing down their necks," she said.
I included more blockquote goodness here than usual, but as someone whose credit score was crushed by the recession, this one hits home for me. Still, the credit reporting agencies ought to be one credit reporting bureau run by the government -- not three separate companies that can operate based on deals and corporate alliances.