Opinion: Domestic and elder abuse leave scars many can’t see

Maria suffered years of psychological and physical abuse by her husband. He called her “stupid” and “worthless” so many times that she started to believe it herself. He forced her to sign complicated financial documents that she struggled to understand. If she asked questions, he threatened her and her dog. So, in fearful resignation, she signed.  

Just when Maria created a safety plan to leave him, she learned that she was thousands of dollars in debt. Her abusive husband forced her to take out credit cards, a car loan and a cellphone plan in her name – none of which he paid for.   

Drowning in debt and burdened with a low credit score, Maria was unable to get a cellphone on her own, which made it difficult to find employment. She struggled to find housing because she could not pass the credit check. She felt constant anxiety about making ends meet. Daunted by these challenges and terrified by the uncertainty of her future, Maria returned to her abusive husband, the financial stability outweighing the physical and emotional trauma. 

Though Maria’s name is fictionalized, her story is real, and it’s too familiar for millions of domestic violence survivors.

One in two survivors, like Maria, is a victim of coerced debt. The sad fact is that nearly all survivors of domestic violence have experienced economic abuse. Worse yet, they cite it as one of the main reasons they stay in or return to a dangerous situation.

Survivors of gender-based violence, sex and labor trafficking, elder and caretaker abuse carry an average of $15,000 of debt that was coerced through fraud, intimidation, lies, threats or actual harm. In a 2024 national survey of 14,000 coerced debt survivors, only a handful reported that they found relief from that debt through existing remedies.

When people think about domestic violence, most think of physical abuse, but any survivor will tell you safety is out of reach because safety costs money – and their partners know it. In nearly every case, domestic violence includes emptied bank accounts and mountains of insurmountable debt.  

Economic abuse keeps people like Maria locked in dangerous situations. It also increases the likelihood that they will be harmed or killed by their abusive partner. 

But that doesn’t have to be the case. New York can help keep survivors safe.

That’s why we are sponsoring legislation (A.3038-A/S.1353-A) that would provide survivors of gender-based and domestic violence, trafficking, elder and caretaker abuse with a powerful legal remedy to get out from under coerced debt. 

Our bill strikes the perfect balance: it provides a clear legal process by which a survivor can dispute and discharge a debt that they can prove was coerced, while also ensuring that creditors can collect the debt against the party who actually incurred it – the abuser. 

Five other states – including California, Connecticut, Texas, Maine and Minnesota – have all passed laws similar to our New York bill. In 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced a rulemaking to address coerced debt for survivors across the country.

Unfortunately, the new Trump administration has abruptly halted this important work. Just last week, the Trump administration rescinded 67 pieces of guidance issued by the CFPB that protect consumers, including survivors of violence, against predatory practices. We cannot count on the federal government to provide relief for survivors, so our state legislature must take the lead.

Without adequate remedy in federal or state law, innocent survivors of violence are left holding the bag.

At a time when the federal government is rolling back protections for consumers, New York State must act to protect some of the most marginalized consumers – survivors of gender-based and domestic violence and trafficking, elder and caretaker abuse. 

We must seize this opportunity and pass the coerced debt bill now. Survivors of violence already shoulder the burden of trauma. They should not have to pay for their abuse.