(a) It is unlawful for a financial institution or other commercial institution extending secured or unsecured credit, upon receiving an application for financial assistance or credit for the acquisition, construction, rehabilitation, repair, or maintenance of a housing accommodation or other property or services, or the acquisition or improvement of unimproved property, or upon receiving an application for any sort of loan of money, to permit one of its officials or employees during the execution of the official's or the employee's duties

(1) to discriminate against the applicant because of sex, physical or mental disability, marital status, changes in marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, race, religion, color, or national origin in a term, condition, or privilege relating to the obtainment or use of the institution's financial assistance or credit, except to the extent of a federal statute or regulation applicable to a transaction of the same character;

(2) to make or cause to be made a written or oral inquiry or record of the sex, physical or mental disability, marital status, changes in marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, race, religion, color, or national origin of a person seeking the institution's financial assistance or credit, unless the inquiry is for the purpose of ascertaining the creditor's rights and remedies applicable to the particular extension of credit and is not made or used in order to discriminate in a determination of creditworthiness;

(3) to refuse to extend credit, issue a credit card, or make a loan to a married person or a person with a physical or mental disability, who is otherwise creditworthy, if so requested by the person;

(4) to refuse to issue a credit card to a married person in that person's name, if so requested by the person, provided, however, that the person so requesting a card may be required to open an account in that name.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of (a) of this section, any practice permitted by federal statute or regulation applicable to financial or credit transactions of the same character as those covered by this section does not constitute discrimination under this section.

(c) An action by a financial institution or other commercial institution extending credit taken in compliance with (a) of this section, including the extension of credit or the making of a loan, is not a violation of AS 06.20.240, unless done with the intent or purpose of obtaining a higher rate of interest than would otherwise be permitted by AS 06.20.230.

(d) This section does not prohibit an institution described in (a) of this section from refusing to contract with a person if the person lacks the legal capacity to contract or if the institution is reasonably in doubt about the person's legal capacity to contract.