There have been renewed efforts for legislation to protect consumers against overdraft fees. Consumer advocates are concerned that because banks and credit unions are looking for additional sources of income, they are allegedly charging consumers high overdraft fees.

These numerous banks have allegedly been processing excessive overdraft fees as “predatory lending in disguise,” according to Ohio U.S. Senator Jerrod Brown. Senator Brown has been a leading voice promoting legislation that would set up new consumer protections against snowballing overdraft fees. Brown is co-sponsoring the legislation, known as the Stop Overdraft Profiteering Act, with Senator Cory Booker from New Jersey.

Brown says overdraft fees are most harmful to lower-income bank customers who can least afford it, according to a report by Cleveland.com.

Many bank customers have told stories of having to pay these overdraft fees as a result of being unable to deposit their checks in time due to being hospitalized or undergoing other extenuating circumstances beyond their control. These fees can range from $24 to $32 per overdraft fee.

In 2017, three of the largest banks in the U.S. enjoyed over $5 billion in revenue from overdraft fees. Senator Brown noted that the CEO of Minnesota-based TCF National Bank named his personal yacht “Overdraft.” TCF National Bank faced legal action last year from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, accusing the bank of violating rules that govern the assessment of overdraft fees on debit purchases and ATM withdrawals.

More recently, the CFPB has shelved plans to set up new regulations that would govern overdraft protection practices. The agency instead published a new model disclosure form, which it calls Know Before You Owe, to guide financial institutions in drafting the disclosure forms that tell customers the terms of their overdraft protection services.

Others have supported new legislation aimed at protecting bank customers, but many people say these pieces of legislation will likely not pass because of the pro-business Republican majority in Congress and President Trump.

The fees that banks allegedly charge for overdrafts have been trending up. These alleged excessive overdraft fees have resulted in some settlements, but these banks are likely to continue with these overdraft fees unless there is new legislation that adequately protects bank customers. Many financial institutions have been part of these investigations into excessive overdraft fees, including HSBC, North Carolina State Employees Credit Union, and many others.

Historically, some banks have been criticized for manipulating the order in which they process transactions in a way that increases their overdraft fee revenues at their customers’ expense. By processing transactions in the order of largest to smallest, instead of in chronological order, banks can drain their customers’ accounts sooner, causing more transactions to trigger an overdraft fee.

Consumers who have challenged practices like these have in some cases secured multi-million dollar class action settlements, recovering compensation for themselves and many other affected bank customers. If you believe you have been subject to questionable overdraft fees practices, you may be able to join an ongoing overdraft fees class action lawsuit investigation.