Rep. James Mills’ legislation moves to the Senate
ATLANTA— Today the Georgia House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed House Bill 926 that will allow state-chartered banks to more easily renew loans or lines of credit to customers in good standing. The measure passed 165-1.
“There are many Georgians throughout the state who have consistently made payments on loans or lines of credit and remain in good standing with their banks, but cannot renew the loan because of issues beyond their control, and that is wrong,” said Banks and Banking Committee Chairman James Mills (R-Gainesville), the sponsor of the legislation. “My hope is that this legislation is a step towards restoring credit access to fiscally responsible Georgians.”
Current law prevents state-chartered banks from renewing or restructuring loans or credit for any customer if the action would cause the bank to exceed its legal lending limit. The legal lending limit is the maximum amount a bank can lend to a single borrower whether it is a single person or a business. This bill gives more flexibility to state-chartered banks whose legal lending limit has been lowered because of declining capital on their balance sheet.
“Every day that we wait on this legislation to become law, a citizen in our district is being denied the right to renew a performing loan, compounding the economic difficulties our state is experiencing,” added Representative Mills. “If a Georgian with a loan in good standing seeks to renew it, they should have that option, which keeps business and jobs alive.”
House Bill 926 was immediately transmitted to the Senate upon final passage.
###
Representative James Mills represents the citizens of District 25, which includes portions of Hall County. He was elected into the House of Representatives in 1992, and currently serves as the Chairman of the Banks & Banking Committee, and Secretary of the Rules Committee. He also serves on the Appropriations and Ways and Means Committees.