American Beverage Licenses (ABL) applauded the U.S. House of Representatives for not repealing swipe fee reforms with the passage of the Financial CHOICE Act last week.
The initial draft of the Financial CHOICE Act of 2017 (H.R. 10), which advanced the House on June 8 with a 233-186 vote, included provisions to repeal swipe fee reforms that were put in place under the Durbin amendment to the Dodd-Frank Act. The Durbin amendment put a cap on charges stores pay banks when a customer uses the card.
In late May, however, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), took the repeal off the table, letting the Durbin amendment stand.
“On behalf of the nearly 15,000 independent bar, tavern and package store owners ABL represents, I would like to thank members of Congress for their determined efforts during the legislative process to listen to the concerns of the beverage retailer community and support a bill that maintains laws that have helped level the debit card routing market, and takes into account runaway swipe fees,” ABL Executive Director John Bodnovich said.
ABL officials said repealing or weakening the swipe fee law would have removed competition from the debit routing market, and made consumers’ transactions less expensive and more secure.
“This is an important win for our members because it’s a bottom line issue that affects their businesses and their customers,” Bodnovich said. “An effort like this is a good reminder that beverage licensees will stand up for their interests on Capitol Hill and continue to play an important role in policy debates that affect their businesses.”