§ 111. Credit counseling agencies; financial management instructional courses

(a) The clerk of each district shall maintain a publicly available list of--

(1) credit counseling agencies that provide 1 or more programs described in section 109(h) currently approved by the United States trustee or the bankruptcy administrator for the district, as applicable; and

(2) instructional courses concerning personal financial management currently approved by the United States trustee or the bankruptcy administrator for the district, as applicable.

(b) The United States trustee or bankruptcy administrator shall only approve a credit counseling agency or instructional course concerning personal financial management as follows:

(1) The United States trustee or bankruptcy administrator shall have thoroughly reviewed the qualifications of the credit counseling agency or of the provider of the instructional course under the standards set forth in this section, and the programs or instructional courses which will be offered by such agency or provider, and may require an agency or provider of an instructional course which has sought approval to provide information with respect to such review.

(2) The United States trustee or bankruptcy administrator shall have determined that the credit counseling agency or course of instruction fully satisfies the applicable standards set forth in this section.

(3) When an agency or course of instruction is initially approved, such approval shall be for a probationary period not to exceed 6 months. An agency or course of instruction is initially approved if it did not appear on the approved list for the district under subsection (a) immediately prior to approval.

(4) At the conclusion of the probationary period under paragraph (3), the United States trustee or bankruptcy administrator may only approve for an additional 1-year period, and for successive 1-year periods thereafter, any agency or course of instruction which has demonstrated during the probationary or subsequent period that such agency or course of instruction--

(A) has met the standards set forth under this section during such period; and

(B) can satisfy such standards in the future.

(5) Not later than 30 days after any final decision under paragraph (4), that occurs either after the expiration of the initial probationary period, or after any 2-year period thereafter, an interested person may seek judicial review of such decision in the appropriate United States District Court.

(c)

(1) The United States trustee or bankruptcy administrator shall only approve a credit counseling agency that demonstrates that it will provide qualified counselors, maintain adequate provision for safekeeping and payment of client funds, provide adequate counseling with respect to client credit problems, and deal responsibly and effectively with other matters as relate to the quality, effectiveness, and financial security of such programs.

(2) To be approved by the United States trustee or bankruptcy administrator, a credit counseling agency shall, at a minimum--

(A) be a nonprofit budget and credit counseling agency, the majority of the board of directors of which--

(i) are not employed by the agency; and

(ii) will not directly or indirectly benefit financially from the outcome of a credit counseling session;

(B) if a fee is charged for counseling services, charge a reasonable fee, and provide services without regard to ability to pay the fee;

(C) provide for safekeeping and payment of client funds, including an annual audit of the trust accounts and appropriate employee bonding;

(D) provide full disclosures to clients, including funding sources, counselor qualifications, possible impact on credit reports, and any costs of such program that will be paid by the debtor and how such costs will be paid;

(E) provide adequate counseling with respect to client credit problems that includes an analysis of their current situation, what brought them to that financial status, and how they can develop a plan to handle the problem without incurring negative amortization of their debts;

(F) provide trained counselors who receive no commissions or bonuses based on the counseling session outcome, and who have adequate experience, and have been adequately trained to provide counseling services to individuals in financial difficulty, including the matters described in subparagraph (E);

(G) demonstrate adequate experience and background in providing credit counseling; and

(H) have adequate financial resources to provide continuing support services for budgeting plans over the life of any repayment plan.

(d) The United States trustee or bankruptcy administrator shall only approve an instructional course concerning personal financial management--

(1) for an initial probationary period under subsection (b)(3) if the course will provide at a minimum--

(A) trained personnel with adequate experience and training in providing effective instruction and services;

(B) learning materials and teaching methodologies designed to assist debtors in understanding personal financial management and that are consistent with stated objectives directly related to the goals of such course of instruction;

(C) adequate facilities situated in reasonably convenient locations at which such course of instruction is offered, except that such facilities may include the provision of such course of instruction or program by telephone or through the Internet, if the course of instruction or program is effective; and

(D) the preparation and retention of reasonable records (which shall include the debtor's bankruptcy case number) to permit evaluation of the effectiveness of such course of instruction or program, including any evaluation of satisfaction of course of instruction or program requirements for each debtor attending such course of instruction or program, which shall be available for inspection and evaluation by the Executive Office for United States Trustees, the United States trustee, bankruptcy administrator, or chief bankruptcy judge for the district in which such course of instruction or program is offered; and

(2) for any 1-year period if the provider thereof has demonstrated that the course meets the standards of paragraph (1) and, in addition--

(A) has been effective in assisting a substantial number of debtors to understand personal financial management; and

(B) is otherwise likely to increase substantially debtor understanding of personal financial management.

(e) The District Court may, at any time, investigate the qualifications of a credit counseling agency referred to in subsection (a), and request production of documents to ensure the integrity and effectiveness of such credit counseling agencies. The District Court may, at any time, remove from the approved list under subsection (a) a credit counseling agency upon finding such agency does not meet the qualifications of subsection (b).

(f) The United States trustee or bankruptcy administrator shall notify the clerk that a credit counseling agency or an instructional course is no longer approved, in which case the clerk shall remove it from the list maintained under subsection (a).

(g)

(1) No credit counseling agency may provide to a credit reporting agency information concerning whether an individual debtor has received or sought instruction concerning personal financial management from the credit counseling agency.

(2) A credit counseling service that willfully or negligently fails to comply with any requirement under this title with respect to a debtor shall be liable for damages in an amount equal to the sum of--

(A) any actual damages sustained by the debtor as a result of the violation; and

(B) any court costs or reasonable attorneys' fees (as determined by the court) incurred in an action to recover those damages.