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From: acu@stat-l (Shoe)
Newsgroups: net.consumers
Subject: Re: Cash-payers: take note
Message-ID: <32@stat-l>
Date: Sat, 14-Apr-84 16:32:47 EST
Article-I.D.: stat-l.32
Posted: Sat Apr 14 16:32:47 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 17-Apr-84 06:46:30 EST
References: <607@pyuxqq.UUCP> <248@stcvax.UUCP>
Organization: Purdue University Computing Center
Lines: 36

I mailed the postcards American Express supplied to complain to one's
congressman and senators about credit surcharges.  In reply, I got a
letter from my congressman (John Myers, 7th district, Indiana), the
meat of which is reproduced below:

    "...This has been a highly controversial issue with the Senate and
    House taking opposite positions. The Senate, which wants to allow
    surcharges, passed a bill on February 28 to permanently lift the
    surcharge ban and allow surcharges of up to 5 percent on credit
    card purchases. Senator Alfonse D'Amato (R N.Y.) offered an
    amendment to the bill to impose a permanent ban on surcharges, but
    it was defeated by a vote of 22 to 66. The House Banking Committee,
    which wants a permanent surcharge ban, refused to consider the
    Senate bill. Similarly, the Senate vowed to block any bill
    providing for a permanent ban on surcharges passed by the House.

    To break this impasse, the House passed a compromise bill on April
    3 to temporarily extend the ban on surcharges for 14 months, until
    May 13, 1985. I voted for the bill. The bill, H.R. 5026, also
    provides for a study by the Federal Trade Commission and the
    General Accounting Office to determine the impact of credit card
    use on consumer prices. The study should show whether there is any
    merit to the argument made by those who want to allow surcharges
    that cash customers are subsidizing credit card customers because
    merchants must increase their prices to cover credit card costs.

    Senate Banking Committee Chairman Jake Garn (R Utah) has advised
    that this compromise bill will be acceptable to the Senate, and the
    Senate is expected to pass the bill this week...."

The letter was dated April 11, 1984. 

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