Minnesota credit unions and banks were joining forces this week to oppose a retailer-backed interchange bill they described as “very bad legislation.”
It would require debit card issuers to include both signatures and PIN numbers on all plastic issued in the state.
The measure with national “and very costly” implications on interchange would force all issuers outside of Minnesota to reissue the debit cards with both enabling features to all cardholders in the state, the financial services’ trade groups said.
“The bill just got introduced in the House yesterday and is one we are tracking but with the legislature occupied with budget issues it’s hard to say how far this will go,” Mark Cummins, president/CEO of the Minnesota Credit Union Network, said today.
He called the proposal “annoyance” legislation.
The measure was introduced into the House Commerce and Regulatory Reform Committee by Rep. Kurt Bills, (R-Rosemount). There were four other co-sponsors: Reps. Greg Davids, (R-Preston), Kirk Stensrud (R-Eden Prairie), Sheldon Johnson (DFL-St. Paul) and Tom Tilberry (DFL-Fridley).
Cummins said the bill with “is not a balanced piece of legislation as it favors the retailers on interchange allowing them to pick the most convenient method of transactions.”
He said the bill would be opposed by the Network, bankers and the national payments coalition. No hearings have yet been scheduled, Cummins said.
