Establishes a working group to create a pilot program for an alternative system to a credit score for unbanked persons, undocumented immigrants and any other individuals who would benefit from such alternative system.
Summary
A02692 would amend the New York financial services law to create a new section directing the superintendent of financial services to convene a working group on alternatives to traditional credit scores. The working group would be tasked with designing a pilot program for people who do not have a credit score, including unbanked individuals, undocumented immigrants, indigent individuals, and others who could benefit from a different way of measuring creditworthiness.
The bill defines both “creditworthiness” and “credit score” and requires the working group to include representatives from the financial industry and immigration advocates. The group would meet at least monthly, examine alternative models already being discussed or developed elsewhere, and submit recommendations and an implementation timeline to the superintendent, governor, and legislature within one year. The act would take effect immediately.
Impact
If enacted, the bill would not itself replace credit scores or directly change lending standards statewide; instead, it would create an administrative process within the Department of Financial Services to study and design a pilot alternative creditworthiness program. Its main legal effect would be to add section 312 to the financial services law, establishing a formal state working group and reporting obligations, with potential downstream effects on how lenders assess applicants who lack conventional credit histories.
Sentiment
The available context suggests generally positive or reform-oriented support for the bill’s goals, with the measure framed as expanding access to credit for people excluded from the traditional credit system. Because there are no recorded committee transcripts or votes in the provided material, there is no documented opposition or floor debate to indicate broader legislative sentiment beyond the bill’s consumer-access and inclusion focus.
Contention
The main point of potential contention is the inclusion of undocumented immigrants and other nontraditional borrowers in a state-backed effort to develop an alternative creditworthiness system. Supporters are likely to emphasize financial inclusion for unbanked and credit-invisible residents, while critics may question the role of government in credit evaluation, the reliability of alternative scoring methods, and whether the proposal could create risks for lenders or raise policy concerns around immigration status. The bill also leaves the details of any pilot program to a future working group, which may be seen as either a prudent study step or an overly indirect approach.
Same As
Establishes a working group to create a pilot program for an alternative system to a credit score for unbanked persons, undocumented immigrants and any other individuals who would benefit from such alternative system.