The District of Columbia has joined a growing number of local and state jurisdictions that now restrict private employers’ use of credit information in employment decisions. D.C.’s Fair Credit in Employment Amendment Act of 2016, which was signed into law by Mayor Muriel Bowser on February 15, 2017, prohibits D.C. employers from requesting or considering applicants’ and existing employees’ credit information. It is scheduled to go into effect on or around May 1, 2017.
D.C. is the latest major local entity to enact a law that restricts use of credit checks by private employers, joining Chicago, Illinois; Cook County, Illinois; New York City; Madison, Wisconsin; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In addition, there are 10 states that now impose such restrictions on private employers: California; Colorado; Connecticut; Hawaii; Illinois; Maryland; Nevada; Oregon; Vermont; and Washington. Philadelphia joined the ranks after our last update in 2015.
A copy of D.C.’s Fair Credit in Employment Amendment Act is available here. Additionally, NT Lakis staff maintain an up-to-date chart of “State Laws Restricting Use of Employee/Applicants’ Credit Histories,” available to members of the Equal Employment Advisory Council (EEAC) on its website.
Members of EEAC can read more here.