1、CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i North Dakota Merchants Sue Fed, Claiming Debit Card Swipe Fees Exceed Those Allowed by the Durbin Amendment to the Electronic Funds Transfer Act June 2, 2021 On April 30, 2021, two North Dakota retail mer
2、chant associations sued the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Fed), claiming that the Feds Regulation II authorizes debit card interchange (swipe) fees that violate the statutory standard requiring fees that are “reasonable and proportional” to bank costs in processing the transactio
3、ns. In the case, North Dakota Retail Association v. Board of Governors, the plaintiffs assert that increased debit card use has meant “skyrocketing” interchange fee profits for banks and has left merchants no option but to accept debit cards and their high fees, especially when consumers avoid cash
4、during the pandemic. Under the Feds rule, large banks may charge merchants swipe fees up to a cap of 21 cents for each debit card transaction, plus up to .05 percent of the value of the transaction, and up to one cent for fraud-prevention adjustments. In their complaint, the plaintiffs allege that t
