Posted on 03/04/2008 8:51:35 AM PST by outfield
NACS is endorsing proposed legislation that addresses credit card interchange fees. U.S. House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) and Representative Chris Cannon (R-UT) are expected to introduce the Credit Card Fair Fee Act next week.
"As entrepreneurs and businessmen, we want market-based solutions to our issues. The Credit Card Fair Fee Act is the free-market solution to the battle over interchange rates," Richard Oneslager, NACS chairman, told NACS Daily.
NACS issued the following Action Alert to retail members on Thursday:
The most important action you can take in the short term is urging your representatives in Congress to support the legislation, with special emphasis on Republican members.
Our opposition has unlimited financial resources to fight us, and our strength is in our numbers and that we are right. Congress must hear overwhelmingly from constituents supporting this legislation for it to move — and they must hear now.
Right now, phone calls are preferable to letters. Call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask for your representative by name. When you are connected to the office, state your name and company and that you are calling to urge your representative to co-sponsor the "Credit Card Fair Fee Act" (a bill number has not been assigned yet). Be sure to state the following:
1. Why interchange is a big deal to you — you can't negotiate how much rates have gone up…just tell your story. 2. Emphasize that you only want the ability to negotiate fair market interchange rates and rules — a free-market solution. 3. To co-sponsor the bill, have your representative contact Rep. Chris Cannon (if he/she is a Republican) or Chairman John Conyers (if he/she is a Democrat). 4. If your representative has additional questions, refer them to Lyle Beckwith at NACS (703) 518-4220 or lbeckwith@nacsonline.com
To locate the name of your representative, click here.
The only message our opponent is using against us is the erroneous claim that merchants want federal price controls. This is NONSENSE. The interchange market is broken and Visa, MasterCard and their issuing banks are secretly fixing prices. What we are supporting is an open negotiation (with a fair way to resolve disputes should negotiations fail) that seeks interchange rates and rules that would exist if the market were open and competitive.
Visa and Mastercard fix the rates on credit card fees in secret now. The market should be determining them instead.
anything that conyers writes or supports is only good for socialists. he is a card carrying communist...besides, the market already sets the rates, if ya don’t like the rate, don’t use or accept the card...enough people and/or merchants do not accept the card, then the rates will go down...THAT is how a free market works, not through government regulation or socialism...
I feel about the same as Conyers. Don’t think of it as a Conyers bill, think of it as a Cannon bill. The problem is that boycotting them would kill the businesses that did so.
This is what having market power means, they can’t be forced to change their business because there are only 2 credit card companies with that kind of reach. They should be competing, but instead they’re doing the opposite.
I know a number of business owners that feel the same way.
IIRC, the fees for Visa/Mastercard are 4% of the total, and American Express is over 6%.
There used to be discounts for paying cash, but it must not matter to the customer. I know I would pay for more items in cash if there was such a discount.
This is changing the topic, but has anyone else lost their BROWSE button?
What needs to be changed: the laws that force a merchant to accept credit cards without imposing a surcharge. There is absolutely no way that the cash customer should be subsidizing the customer who pays by credit card.
LiMD
The retailer is just passing along their costs, and that’s one of their costs. As Alice says above, the costs keep going up every year. But Visa and Mastercard aren’t passing along costs, those fees aren’t cost-based.
Because they have the ability to set prices, Visa and MC can jack them up a little more each year. Sort of like the frog who won’t jump out of the pan, the businesses which accept cards put up with a little more pain.
But I agree that it’s absolutely absurd that cash-using customers have to pay for it. That’s why making cash discounts easier to offer makes so much sense. Of course, it’s not in the credit cards’ interest to make that easy, so they don’t. But I think the system can change, and maybe soon.
You need to logout, upgrade your computer, and log back in.
What do you mean, “Upgrade your computer?” Thanks
Oh, I was just kidding. There are quite a few threads about the FR changes.
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