Earned Wage Access Services Act
HB 279 creates the Earned Wage Access Services Act, a new regulatory framework for companies that provide workers access to wages they have already earned but have not yet been paid. The bill defines key terms such as consumer, earned but unpaid income, earned wage access services, fee, and provider, and it requires providers to register with the Division of Consumer Protection and renew that registration annually. It also requires principal owners to undergo fingerprinting and criminal background checks, and it gives the division authority to adopt rules, review provider agreements, and oversee compliance.
The bill sets out detailed consumer protection standards for earned wage access providers. Providers must clearly disclose fees, optional tips or donations, consumer rights, and timing of payment; offer at least one no-fee option; allow cancellation without penalty; protect consumer privacy; reimburse certain overdraft or NSF fees caused by provider error; and avoid using credit reports, credit cards, or coercive debt-collection practices. The act also states that compliant earned wage access services are not loans, debt, money transmission, or interest-bearing transactions under specified state-law frameworks, and it exempts providers from certain financial institution and collection agency laws.
HB 279 amends the Division of Consumer Protection’s enforcement authority to include the new chapter and creates a new Title 13, Chapter 75 governing earned wage access services. It imposes registration, renewal, disclosure, operational, and enforcement requirements on providers operating in Utah, while also authorizing administrative fines, court enforcement, disgorgement, injunctions, and civil penalties for violations. The bill affects earned wage access companies, employers and payroll-related service arrangements, and consumers who use early-access wage products, and it clarifies that qualifying services are not to be treated as loans, credit, debt, or money transmission under the specified conditions.
The bill appears to have received strong and largely unanimous support throughout the legislative process. House committee votes advanced the bill and related substitute/amendment recommendations with broad majorities, the House passed it 67-0, the Senate committee reported it favorably 4-0, and the Senate passed it 26-0. The voting history suggests broad agreement that the market for earned wage access services should be regulated and consumer protections should be formalized.
There is little visible contention in the available record, as no committee transcripts were provided and the recorded votes were overwhelmingly favorable. The main policy issues implied by the bill are how to classify earned wage access products and how tightly to regulate provider practices. The bill addresses potential concerns about fees, voluntary tips, debt-like collection tactics, credit reporting, and whether these services should be treated as loans or money transmission, indicating that consumer advocates would likely favor the protections while industry participants may have focused on preserving a non-loan, non-credit regulatory status.