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HB 919

An Act amending the act of May 26, 2017 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the Pennsylvania REAL ID Compliance Act, providing for exemption from fees.

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Johanny Cepeda-Freytiz and 13 co-sponsors

The bill bans discrimination by banks and insurers based on political, religious, ESG, or non‑risk factors and requires transparency, annual attestations, and potential private law

Referred to Aging & Older Adult Services
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WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · HB 919

HB 919 — Fair Access to Financial Services (North Carolina) — Summary

Status / Key Dates
- Title: Fair Access to Financial Services
- Introduced (filed): November 12, 2024
- Read first time / referred: March 6, 2025 (referred to State Affairs)
- Effective date: “This act is effective when it becomes law” and applies to acts committed on or after that date.

Purpose
- To prohibit certain forms of discrimination by banks and other financial institutions when deciding whether to provide, continue, or condition financial services, and to require annual attestation and disclosure when subjective standards are used. The bill also prohibits use of certain environmental, social, governance (ESG), political, or ideological factors in insurance underwriting.

Major provisions
1. New anti‑discrimination rule for banks (adds G.S. 53C‑6‑21)
- Prohibits a bank from denying, cancelling, or otherwise discriminating in services based on:
- Political opinions, speech, or affiliations.
- Religious beliefs, exercise, or affiliations (except where the bank asserts a religious purpose).
- Any factor that is not a quantitative, impartial, and risk‑based standard (including business‑related factors that are not objective and risk‑based).
- Use of any rating/score that functions as a “social credit” score where the score considers:
- Lawful firearm ownership or lawful engagement in firearm activities.
- Engagement in fossil fuel‑based energy, timber, mining, or agriculture industries.
- Support for government efforts to combat illegal immigration, drug trafficking, or human trafficking.
- Failure or expected failure to meet environmental standards, ESG benchmarks, or corporate board/employment composition benchmarks (so long as the person complies with applicable law).
- Policies encouraging employee participation in social justice programs (e.g., DEI training).
- Also bars discrimination based on engagement with or advocacy for persons described above.

  1. Subjective standards and consumer consent

    • Banks may use subjective standards only if they fully disclose and explain them before contracting, and obtain the customer’s signature attesting to that disclosure.

  2. Annual attestation

    • By January 1 each year, a bank must attest under penalty of perjury (on a Commissioner‑prescribed form) whether it is in compliance with the new section.

  3. Private right of action and remedies

    • An aggrieved person may sue for damages or injunctive relief. Violations are treated as unfair or deceptive trade practices under G.S. 75‑1.1.

  4. Application to other financial entities

    • The bill applies the new bank anti‑discrimination provisions to State associations and State savings banks (amendments to G.S. 54B‑78 and G.S. 54C‑64).
    • Credit unions must submit the same annual report/attestation to the credit union Administrator (new G.S. 54‑109.23).

  5. Insurance underwriting (amendment to G.S. 58‑63‑15)

    • Prohibits refusing to insure or charging different rates solely because of risks relating to ESG criteria, DEI policies, or “political and ideological factors,” unless the differential is supported by sound underwriting and actuarial principles tied to actual or reasonably anticipated loss experience.

Who is affected
- Banks chartered or operating under North Carolina law, state savings banks, state associations, credit unions, and insurers.
- Consumers, businesses, and organizations that may have been subject to account closures, service denials, or differential pricing based on political, religious, or ESG‑related factors (including firearm owners, fossil fuel and agricultural businesses, organizations engaged in immigration enforcement support, and employers with DEI programs).
- Regulators (Commissioner of Banks; credit union Administrator) — new reporting/attestation duties and potential enforcement.

Potential impacts and considerations
- Limits the ability of financial institutions and insurers to consider non‑risk, non‑quantitative factors (including many ESG or politically motivated screening practices) when making service or pricing decisions.
- Introduces new compliance and documentation obligations (annual attestations; disclosure and signatures when subjective standards are used).
- Creates litigation risk (private suits and UDTP claims) and possible reputational/operational impacts for institutions that use broad non‑risk screening tools or vendor scoring systems.
- Insurance prohibition allows underwriting differences only if justified by actuarial principles, which may require insurers to document actuarial support for practice differences.

Procedural note
- The bill was reported as a first reading and referred to committee (State Affairs). It will take effect upon enactment and apply prospectively to acts after that date.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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