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Senate set to vote on debit-card swipe fees
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| Contributor | ArmyDem |
| Last Edited | ArmyDem Jun 09, 2011 03:39am |
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| Category | News |
| Media | Newspaper - Washington Post |
| News Date | Tuesday, June 7, 2011 09:00:00 AM UTC0:0 |
| Description | By Cezary Podkul and Ylan Q. Mui, Published: June 7
After months of intensive lobbying by banks, the Senate is slated to vote Wednesday on a controversial bill that would delay changes to debit-card swipe fees that would cost the industry billions of dollars.
Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) unveiled revised legislation Tuesday that requires four banking regulators to study the issue for six months. The Federal Reserve would then have an additional six months to rewrite the rules governing swipe fees. Tester’s original bill called for a two-year delay and would have required Congress to vote again to approve additional action.
“Working together across party lines, we’ve found common ground and agreed on a plan that actually fixes the problem with a balanced approach,” Tester said.
The debate centers on the fees that merchants must pay banks each time a debit card is swiped. They average is between 1 and 2 percent of each purchase and totaled $16.9 billion in 2009, according to the Fed. The proposed regulations would reduce the fees by roughly 70 percent to a maximum of 12 cents a swipe. Credit cards, which can carry significantly higher interchange rates, are not covered by the law.
Among Tester’s co-sponsors were Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), who had previously voted in favor of overhauling swipe fees. Tester needs 60 votes to prevent a filibuster, and one banking executive said Tuesday night that the industry had secured a number in the mid-50s, with 10 additional senators undecided. |
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