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Statement: ACI Applauds State-Level Decisions Preventing Interchange Fee Prohibition

Arlington, VA-Illinois and Colorado consumers stood to lose credit card rewards, and small businesses faced steep compliance costs, putting them at a competitive disadvantage against larger merchants, if an interchange fee prohibition act had been enacted.

But at the end of May, the Illinois legislature voted to delay implementation of a 2024 bill another year while a similar bill in Colorado was vetoed by Governor Jared Polis on June 3. These bills would prevent credit card interchange fees from being charged on portions of the final transaction cost like taxes and tips.

American Consumer Institute (ACI) Finance and Insurance Policy Analyst, Leah Locke, states:

“ACI applauds the decision by the Illinois legislature to delay implementation of their interchange fee prohibition bill and Colorado Governor Polis’ decision to veto similar legislation. Price caps like these put the states’ economy at risk because of the potential for exorbitant compliance costs and consumer reduction in credit card rewards. These costs were expected to lead to economic consequences such as reduced jobs and disadvantage small businesses relative to larger merchants. These states preserved the credit card payment system allowing consumers to make payment choices that reflect their values.”

This link is specifically on the interchange fee in IL.

This link is on interchange fees generally

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The American Consumer Institute is a nonprofit education and research organization.

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