President Barack Obama last week signed into law a measure designed to protect consumers from exorbitant fees and interest rates on credit cards. And mostly, this is a good bill that helps average people.

But we remain concerned about what the new law doesn't do and about some of its unintended consequences that already are becoming visible.

The bill passed by Congress last week bans certain "gotcha" fees and other practices long employed by credit card companies as profit centers. Once the law takes effect, for example, issuers of credit cards cannot charge over-the-limit fees on their cards unless the consumer specifically has authorized spending over the card's limit.

The bill also requires that companies spell out in black-and-white terms how long it will take a consumer to pay off an outstanding balance if only a minimum payment is made. Issuers also have to give customers a 45-day notice about any changes, including in interest rates or credit limits.

But the bill does not cap interest rates or fees, doesn't limit the ability of an issuer to change spending limits or to close an account and doesn't address "behavioral profiling," or the practice of putting a spending limit on a customer who uses a card in a poor neighborhood.

And there is in the short term, at least, some likely collateral damage. It's likely that issuers will bump up the annual percentage rates on their cards to compensate for the fact it will be harder to raise them. It's also likely that people who pay off their balances every month will get nicked more often by annual fees and may lose the grace period on when interest accumulates. Look for other fees and penalties as well and perhaps fewer competitors as smaller card issuers leave the business.

But over the long term, these amount to nits we're picking. The bill brings welcome increased transparency to a business long viewed with disdain because of its practices. But consumers need to know the rules and use any credit card with prudence.

REPRINTED FROM THE MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL.