Durbin fights to keep card provision from being swiped out of Wall Street bill

[cal04]

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/103711-durbin-fights-to-keep-card-provision-from-being-swiped

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) is going on offense to ensure his crackdown on debit card fees remains in Wall Street overhaul legislation.

Durbin, the majority whip, isn’t one of the 43 House and Senate lawmakers putting the final touches on the Wall Street bill, but he is waging a vocal campaign from the sidelines so his provision isn’t swiped at the last minute.

The “interchange fee” issue is among the toughest battles remaining in a 2,000-page financial overhaul lawmakers intend to finish this month and send to President Barack Obama. Durbin’s legislation, which passed the Senate in May, divides the business community between merchants and banks.

The legislation would direct the Federal Reserve to set “reasonable and proportional” fees paid by merchants and retailers to banks and credit unions that issue debit cards. The House legislation, passed in December, did not include a related provision.

(snip)
“If we do not take steps to reasonably regulate this system, a dollar won’t be worth a dollar anymore — it will be worth whatever Visa and MasterCard want it to be,” Durbin said Wednesday. “We will literally cede control of America’s currency to the Visa and MasterCard duopoly.”