By Dave Dahl
SPRINGFIELD – If you are a small business person, you could say this about credit cards: can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em.
The Illinois Retail Merchants Association says the so-called “swipe fees” the banks collect should stop at the product or service’s cost – and not include tax and tip.
“It is time to start reining in the chaos,” said Gordon Davis, co-owner of the Whimsy Tea Company in Springfield. “Give us some predictability. Give us the ability to invest more in our communities.”
IRMA president and CEO Rob Karr said threats of diminished rewards on the credit card accounts always ring hollow. He praises a new state law exempting tax and tip from the swipe fee but says it should go national.
The Illinois Bankers Association and Illinois Credit Union League responded with a joint statement:
“Today’s poll and press conference from the retailers was nothing more than a smokescreen. The survey clearly failed to inform consumers that this law will cause chaos every time they use a credit or debit card and no amount of spin from the retailers will change that.
“Besides violating a host of federal laws as our legal complaint makes clear, this law does absolutely nothing for consumers. It doesn’t mean bigger tips for workers, or that workers get to keep more of their tips. In fact, it could incentivize people not to leave a tip at all. And the law doesn’t raise a single dollar for the state of Illinois. It simply forces banks, credit unions, small businesses and everyone at the check-out counter to navigate a needlessly complex new system that rewards the state’s largest retail stores. No one else in the world has adopted this approach, and for good reason.”
Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected].
