The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Kohl and Johnson go different ways in fight over debit-card swipe fees
By Craig Gilbert
Wisconsin’s two US senators split their votes Wednesday in the battle over debit-card swipe fees -- a collision of business interests pitting retail merchants against banks.
At issue is a new federal cap on the fees that stores pay to banks for the debit-card purchases their customers make.
Montana Democrat Jon Tester led an effort in the Senate to delay implementation of the cap for a year while it received more study.
Tester needed 60 votes, but got only got 54.
Republican Ron Johnson was among the 54 senators on the losing side.
Democrat Herb Kohl, who supported the cap when it was approved by the Senate last year, voted the other way.
But the fight, which featured a heavy lobbying effort on both sides, did not strictly follow party lines.
In an interview just before the vote, Johnson said he thought both business groups had legitimate arguments.
“It’s an awful vote,” he said, contending that the options before the Senate Wednesday didn’t solve the problem. He said merchants have a legitimate complaint, but he said the new cap, backed by Illinois Democrat Dick Durbin, is “imposing a price-fixing solution.”
“No matter which way you vote, you’re not voting for a good solution,” Johnson said. “I hear from both (sides). I agree with both of them. They’re both right. They’re both wrong. That’s not me being wishy-washy. That’s the fact of the matter. This is not a solution.”
In a statement after the vote, Johnson said: “A real solution will involve transparency of fees to the consumer, the ability of retailers to post fees and be selective in the acceptance of cards, and a limitation on the ability of the card companies to impose interchange contracts on retailers.”
Legislation passed by the Senate last year required the Federal Reserve to impose limits on swipe fees. The Fed came up with a cap of 12 cents per transaction, compared to an average charge to merchants now of about 44 cents.
Kohl said in a statement Wednesday:
“We believe that this vote will save consumers a substantial amount of money on their everyday purchases. This was a vote to reestablish some balance between the big banks, the credit card companies and Main Street in a way that will help consumers without hurting community banks and credit unions.”
