Guest Blogger Arone Silverman

Consumers Union would like to shout out a big THANK YOU to all the activists and volunteers who worked tirelessly these past years, months and even weeks to assure a victory in credit card reform. Thousands of activists from all 50 states submitted comments, took email actions and made phone calls sending a clear message to Congress. Others shared their stories with us and took time to talk to the media and legislators about their experiences. You put a face to the problem and were invaluable in making this issue resonate with thousands of other Americans. CU activist Steve Picou's experience sums up why citizens getting involved is so important

Bank of America recently raised the rate on my credit card to 28% for no other reason than I have a fairly high balance. I have not missed a payment on any of the many cards I have and my credit is good. I’ve been quite outraged about this and sent emails to all my elected officials in Washington via the Consumers Union site. That’s what produced the phone call.

I’m going to be part of a team of citizen lobbyists working with Consumers Union this week. We’ll be calling on senators (the bill already passed the House) and their staffers, telling our stories and demanding passage of S. 414.

Pam Banks, Policy Counsel and Ellen Bloom, Director for Federal Policy were able to attend the Credit CARD Act signing in the Rose Garden at the White House and represent Consumers Union and the thousands of activists that made this happen in Washington DC. Also there Senators Dodd, Schumer, Reid, Shelby and Schumer as well as Representative Carolyn Maloney (who we give an especially big Thank You!). For all those in the Consumer Advocacy world, it was a great to watch President Obama sign the new law.

We’ll have updates as we watch the credit market to see how the new regulations affect consumers. Check back to the blog to see credit card issues along with a number of consumer related posts. Again, thanks to all who put in so much time and effort to make this action an overwhelming success.