Print
With a federal shutdown looming, Senators Durbin and Marshall are threatening to oppose all government spending proposals that do not contain the Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA) as an amendment. This is the ‘Durbin 2.0’ Big Box Bailout bill that will cap interchange rates for credit cards and benefit large retailers at the expense of credit unions and consumers.
The League met this week with Senator King’s office to discuss his position on the CCCA. Aided by expert Rebekah Higgins, Vice President of Payments for Synergent, the League had a productive conversation on the importance of interchange fees in fighting fraud, especially given the regulatory environment in the United States.
While we do not expect the CCCA to stay on as an amendment to the current minibus funding proposal, these developments could foreshadow a prolonged fight on this issue. This is why opportunities to discuss our concerns with our delegation are important.
Next week, the Senate is scheduled to hold a markup for the re-introduced Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation Banking Act (SAFER Banking) Act. This legislation, formerly known as the SAFE Banking Act, would provide a regulatory safe harbor for credit unions banking legal cannabis-related businesses. Passage of the bill has been an ongoing game of cat and mouse. The Maine delegation supports the SAFER Banking Act, and while the House has passed the SAFER Banking Act numerous times with strong bipartisan support, the bill has not yet made it to the floor of the Senate. With our national partners, the League will continue to monitor the progress of this legislation closely.