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What is the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce?

The Chamber is the leading voice for the LGBTQ+ and Allied Business Community in the Greater Houston region.

Mission: The Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce accelerates economic opportunity for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer + business community through a strong network of business allies, innovative programs, strategic partnerships and advance policies that foster economic inclusion and equality.

The Chamber launched in 2016 to ensure representation for the LGBTQ+ Business Community.  The organization was founded by Co-Founders Tammi Wallace and Gary Wood.  The  Chamber is supported by members and Corporate Partners that invest in the mission of the organization.

Fast Facts:
  • Grown every year since the launch of the organization
  • Only business organization in the region focused on supporting and growing the LGBTQ+ and Allied Business Community
  • Working with the Chamber and the NGLCC, the City of Houston is the first city in Texas to recognize LGBT-owned businesses
  • Largest number of Certified LGBTBE® businesses in the State of Texas
Learn more about the Chamber here.

Letter Urges “Big Three” Credit Unions to Take Action

“After a legal name change, many transgender and nonbinary consumers end up with multiple credit files in different names and suffer a loss of credit history and score…”

Letter Urges “Big Three” Credit Unions to Take Action to Correct Credit Reporting Problems for Transgender and Nonbinary Consumers

After a legal name change, many transgender and nonbinary consumers end up with multiple credit files in different names and suffer a loss of credit history and score…” 

HOUSTON, TX (February 24, 2022) – Today, 145 organizations sent a letter to the “Big Three” credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and Transunion) and to the Consumer Data Industry Association (CDIA), the trade association that represents them, urging them to take needed actions to correct credit report problems for transgender and nonbinary consumers. 

The signatory organizations include LGBTQI+ advocacy organizations, community centers, chambers of commerce, businesses, and community groups, as well as consumer, employment, housing, and anti-poverty organizations.  The Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce is proud to join with these 145 organizations in calling on the “Big Three” credit bureaus and CDIA to take needed action to fix problems with credit reports and credit scores for trans and nonbinary consumers.

The letter responds to the CDIA’s February 2 announcement, “Helping Transgender and Nonbinary Individuals Prevent Potential Disruptions to Their Credit,” that describes new policies at the Big Three credit bureaus to allow transgender and nonbinary consumers to submit name-change documentation to update the name on the credit reports.


“We are calling on the “Big Three” and CDIA to fix these problems for the trans and nonbinary communities,” said Tammi Wallace, Chamber Co-Founder, President & CEO. “These issues create yet another significant barrier in terms of economic opportunity including access to jobs and other areas such as loans and housing.”


The letter acknowledges the credit bureaus’ new policies as an important first step and recommends additional action to correct persisting problems for trans and nonbinary consumers. After a legal name change, many transgender and nonbinary consumers end up with multiple credit files in different names and suffer a loss of credit history and score as a result. Additionally, credit reports out trans and nonbinary people to landlords, employers, and lenders when they apply for loans, jobs, and housing because the report still includes their deadname.


To address ongoing problems the letter calls on credit bureaus to take additional steps, including


Using consumers’ full 9-digit Social Security numbers in matching algorithms to ensure credit information is associated with the correct credit file.

Facilitating name changes by having clear procedures to update a consumer’s name on their credit report when presented with a legal name change order, and ensuring that staff are sufficiently trained in those procedures and are able to provide culturally competent service to transgender and nonbinary consumers.

Reducing the burden on transgender and nonbinary consumers to submit name-change documentation to each credit reporting agency by instituting a “one-stop” system that allows a consumer to submit a single request to have the legal name on their report updated, and ensures the request is communicated to all consumer reporting agencies.

Preventing the occurrence and recurrence of fragmented credit files by creating procedures to detect when a consumer changes their legal name with a creditor, to associate the new name with their credit file, and to consolidate a consumer’s credit information in their current and previous names in a single credit file — as the industry presently does when cisgender women and other consumers change their last names.

Preventing the disclosure of transgender and nonbinary consumers’ deadnames to landlords, employers, and underwriters by disclosing only a consumer’s current legal name in reports provided to credit report users.


The letter was organized by a coalition of LGBTQI+, consumer, and employment advocacy organizations–including the California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA), Center for LGBTQ Economic Advancement & Research (CLEAR), Equality California, the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund (TLDEF), the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), and the UC Berkeley Center for Consumer Law & Economic Justice.


The full letter and list of signatories can be downloaded and read as a PDF here.


About the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce

The Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce accelerates economic opportunity for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer + (LGBTQ+) business community through a strong network of business allies, innovative programs, strategic partnerships and advance policies that foster economic inclusion and equality.  Learn more at www.houstonlgbtchamber.com.


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Additional Info

Media Contact : Tammi Wallace, tammi.wallace@houstonlgbtchamber.com, 713-301-2266

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Listen to Chamber Leadership talk about the important work of the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce focused on economic inclusion for the LGBTQ+ & Allied Business Community. The Chamber is at the intersection of business + community!

The Chamber provides tremendous value to member businesses through business development opportunities, marketing exposure to businesses and consumers, including the LGBTQ+ market, representation in the regional and national LGBTQ+ and business communities, resources for business growth and operation, and advocacy for equal rights and business-friendly public policy.

Media Inquiries:

For media inquiries, please contact 832-510-3002 or info@houstonlgbtchamber.com

The Chamber is always making news! Check out recent articles about the Chamber here.