Jeanette Kidd was surprised she wasn't making any headway on her debt. That is, until she noticed the interest rate on her statement.

After she made a payment 11 days late, the interest rate on her card went up 11 points -- from 14% to 25%.

With only $2,500 on her Bank of America Credit card, Kidd isn't deep in debt, but every little bit helps.

"Now they're going to get 11-percent above that per year, that would pay my utility bill," said Kidd.

She tried to get the rate lowered, but the bank would only take it down to 21%.

If it were 2010, this never would have happened.

"We expect consumers to live within their means and pay what they owe, but we also expect financial institutions to act with the same sense of responsibility," said President Obama Friday, just before signing the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 into law.

As a result of the legislation, companies will have to give customers a 60-day grace period after the bill's due date before they raise the card's interest rate.

"That will help, give them the opportunity to correct the situation before the rate raises," said Mike Cherry, the CEO of Consumer Credit Counseling in Springfield.

However, the new law doesn't go into effect until February of 2010.

"They tell you there's nothing they could do about it, and, you know, they told me to call back in a couple of months and maybe they could do something, you know, do more for me then," Kidd said.

"The credit card companies are being very aggressive on getting the rates adjusted prior to them having to be controlled by the new legislation," said Cherry.

That means, now the bank can raise your rates, without warning, as much as your contract allows. You'll just have to foot the bill.

"I made the charges on the card, so I have to pay the bill," admits Kidd.

In reaction to the legislation, Betty Riess, a spokeswoman for Bank of America said, "Our intention is to continue providing credit to the broadest number of creditworthy customers as possible, while remaining prudent to our lending practices."

Reiss also said, "We periodically review credit risk for individual accounts and may re-price individual accounts based on that risk assessment, which takes into account performance with us as well as external credit risk indicators.

This is just one part of a large credit card reform bill. For more information about the legislation, check out this breakdown by Consumer Union.

Contact: dmagditch@kspr.com