WILLIAM DONALD SCHAEFER, Governor                         Ch. 670

(i) Any person authorized to make loans or extensions of credit under
the laws of this State or the United States who is actively engaged in the business of
making loans or other extensions of credit to residents of this State;

(ii) Any bank, trust company, savings bank, or savings and loan
association whose deposits or accounts are eligible for insurance by the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation or any credit union organized and chartered under the laws of this
State or the United States;

(iii) Any nonprofit organization exempt from taxation under §
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(3));

(iv) Any person licensed as a real estate broker by this Stave where the
person is acting within the course and scope of that license;

(v) Any person licensed as a mortgage lender by this State;

(vi) An individual admitted to the Bar of the Court of Appeals of
Maryland when the individual renders services within the course and scope of practice by
the individual as a lawyer and does not engage in the credit services business on a regular
and continuing basis;

(vii) Any broker-dealer registered with the Securities and Exchange
Commission or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission where the broker-dealer is
acting within the course and scope of that regulation;

(viii) Any consumer reporting agency as defined in the federal Fair
Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. §§ 1681 - 1681t) or in § 14-1201(f) of this title; or

(ix) An individual licensed by the Maryland Board of Public
Accountancy when the individual renders services within the course and scope of practice
by the individual as a certified public accountant and does not engage in the credit
services business on a regular and continuing basis.

14-1902.

A credit services business, its employees, and independent contractors who sell or
attempt to sell the services of a credit services business shall not:

(1)     Receive any money or other valuable consideration from the consumer,
unless the credit services business has secured from the Commissioner a license under
Title 11, Subtitle 3 of the Financial Institutions Article;

(2)     Receive any money or other valuable consideration solely for referral of
the consumer to a retail seller or to any other credit grantor who will or may extend credit
to the consumer, if the credit extended to the consumer is substantially the same terms as
those available to the general public;

(3)     Make, OR ASSIST or advise any consumer to make, any statement OR
OTHER REPRESENTATION that is false or misleading, or which by , the exercise of
reasonable care should be known to be false or misleading, to a consumer reporting

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