Organizations: Join us in support of the Payment Choice Act (HR 4395)
Allies,
Consumer Action and the Consumer Federation of America are seeking sign-ons from advocacy and community organizations in support of the Payment Choice Act, which would give consumers the right to pay with cash in retail transactions.
Many of your organizations signed onto a similar letter last year when the bill was first introduced. The bill that is being filed this year has some new provisions that mirror those of many of the state and city laws that have been enacted to ban “cashless” stores. For instance, it now covers situations in which retailers accept in-person payments at a physical location for transactions that were made by telephone, mail, or internet. It also incorporates reasonable exemptions for transactions over $2,000, large denomination bills, and situations in which the retailer is temporarily unable to make change or experiences a point-of-sale system failure that prevents it from processing cash payments. It also allows for businesses to provide a “reverse ATM” that customers can use, at no charge, to convert their cash to a prepaid card, and then convert the card back to cash at any time. Click here to learn more about the bill.
Refusing to accept cash discriminates against certain populations and denies people equal access to vital and necessary goods or services. Furthermore, cash is a payment choice for many who wish to retain their privacy in the face of relentless data tracking when they use electronic payment cards and mechanisms. The Payment Choice Act would mandate that all retail businesses accept cash as a valid form of payment. It would also ban a business from charging a higher price for a cash payment than for other forms of payment.
Please read the letter and consider signing on via our form. (You do not have to have a Google account to use the form.) The link is: https://forms.gle/ABAcmo8474pVCrNt7
The deadline for sign-ons has been extended to July 30, 2021, close of business Pacific Time.
Yours truly,
Linda Sherry Susan Grant Director of National Priorities Director of Consumer Protection Consumer Action Consumer Federation of America