Small Business Rising coalition allies continue to advocate for Congress to pass the Credit Card Competition Act to rein in sky-high swipe fees for small businesses and consumers driven by the VISA and Mastercard credit card processing duopoly. Dozens of small business groups urged Congress to pass this important legislation earlier this year, and coalition members continue voicing their support through local media in communities across the country — from San Jose, CA to Charleston, SC.
In “Rising credit card fees are overwhelming our businesses” published in Cambridge Day, authors Theodora M. Skeadas, Pooja Paode, and Christy Zheng from Cambridge Local First share how the impacts of the credit card duopoly are particularly impacting Massachusetts businesses because the state is one of two states where businesses are prohibited from passing swipe fees along to customers. The piece highlighted local business owner statements, including Cambridge Local First member Kari Kuelzer, owner of Grendel’s Den and The Sea Hag as saying “If I didn’t have to pay swipe fees, I could pay for the wage of an additional employee”.
Doug McCarthy, CEO of Local First La Plata (Colorado) published an Op Ed in The Durango Herald urging elected officials to pass the Credit Card Competition Act and citing Small Business Rising's support. “Weak antitrust enforcement has allowed consolidation of market power in many industries, which disadvantages small businesses that create the lion’s share of new jobs in the United States,” said McCarthy.
After attending a meeting with Lowcountry Local First staff to share her story with South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham’s office, florist Toni Reale, owner of Roadside Blooms in North Charleston, SC publish an Op Ed in The State urging SC lawmakers to pass the Credit Card Competition Act and detailing her small business spent more than $30,000 the previous year, which could have been used toward hiring an additional employee. (Full text available on the LLF site)
Sue Warfield, President of the American Specialty Toy Retailers Association (ASTRA), and Lauren Gellatly, Senior Advocacy and Campaigns Manager at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, co-authored an Op Ed in the San Jose Spotlight focusing on the legislation’s potential benefits for small businesses.
The voices may come from different communities, but the stories are similar. Swipe fees imposed by these companies are significantly higher — typically two to three percent of a sale — than the actual cost of processing transactions, which averages around 3.6 cents. The lack of competition created by VISA/Mastercard’s market power allows these corporations to extract a monopoly rent from every sales transaction at every small business. It’s time to pass the Credit Card Competition Act to take a step toward leveling the playing field.
For more information on this issue, see:
Small Business Groups Urge Senate Judiciary Committee to Pass Credit Card Competition Act — Small Business Rising partners, February 5, 2024.
Fact Sheet: Credit Card Swipe Fees — A Hidden Monopoly Tax on Small Businesses and Shoppers — Institute for Local Self-Reliance, June 20, 2023.
Merchants Payment Coalition is made up of trade associations and “dedicated to fighting unfair credit and debit card fees and advocates for a more competitive and transparent payments system.”
LowerCreditCardFees.com — A diverse group of organizations representing workers, small businesses, competition and consumer advocates, launched a new ‘Lower Credit Card Fees’ Coalition to dispel myths surrounding the bipartisan Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA) and urging Congress to pass it.
Photo source: Merchants Payments Coalition