A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to amend the retail installment sales act.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 25A‑10 reads as rewritten:
"§ 25A‑10.  "Official fees" defined.
"Official fees" means:
(1)	Fees and charges prescribed by law which actually are or will be paid to public officials or any other person for determining the existence of or for perfecting, releasing, or satisfying a security interest related to a consumer credit sale, including any lien notation fee; or
(2)	Premiums payable for insurance in lieu of perfecting a security interest otherwise required by the seller in connection with a consumer credit sale if the premium does not exceed the fees or charges described in subdivision (1) of this section which would otherwise be payable."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 25A‑15 reads as rewritten:
"§ 25A‑15.  Finance charge rates for consumer credit installment sale contracts.
(a)	With respect to a consumer credit installment sale contract, a seller may contract for and receive a finance charge not exceeding that permitted by this section. A consumer credit installment sale contract may be either precomputed or interest‑bearing. All balances due under a consumer credit installment sale contract from any person as a buyer or as an endorser, guarantor, or surety for any buyer or otherwise jointly or severally, shall be considered a part of the amount financed with regard to the contract for the purpose of computing interest or charges. For the purposes of this section, the finance charge rates are simple interest rates.
(b)	Except as hereinafter provided, the finance charge rate for a consumer credit installment sales contract may not exceed:
(1)	Twenty‑four percent (24%) per annum where the amount financed is less than three thousand five hundred dollars ($3,500);
(2)	Twenty‑two percent (22%) per annum where the amount financed is three thousand five hundred dollars ($3,500) or greater, but less than five thousand dollars ($5,000);
(3)	Twenty percent (20%) where the amount financed is five thousand dollars ($5,000) or greater, but less than seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500);
(4)	Eighteen percent (18%) per annum where the amount financed is seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500) or greater,
except that a minimum finance charge of five dollars ($5.00) may be imposed.
…."
SECTION 3.  This act becomes effective October 1, 2019, and applies to contracts entered into, renewed, or modified on or after that date.