Supreme Court Denies Petition by Merchants for Review of Swipe Fee Reforms

(January 22, 2015) On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a petition by merchant groups to review a legal challenge of the Federal Reserve’s rule on debit card swipe fees. The petition, brought forth from groups such as NACS and FMI, was filed in August of last year seeking the Supreme Court review of a March 2014 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The Court of Appeals decision overturned a favorable decision in the U.S. District Court decision in 2013. The argument detailed by merchant groups stated that the Federal Reserve did not interpret the Durbin Amendment properly by instituting a 21 cent plus fraud adjustment cap for debit swipe fees and that an earlier Fed proposal of 7 to 12 cents per transaction was keeping with Congress’s original intent. OGA is disappointed in the decision and will continue to work with our national counterparts as we engage Congress further on this issue.

NACS & FMI ask US Supreme Court to Hear Debit Swipe Fee Appeal

(August 21, 2014) On Monday, the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) along with several along merchant associations filed suit in requesting the US Supreme Court hear arguments on the Debit Swipe Fee Appeal. This stems from NACS challenging the Fed’s swipe fee rule when the rule went into effect in 2011. The US District Court sided with NACS that the Fed’s rules did not accurate follow the law, but the DC Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed. This led to the NACS, FMI and other associations asking the Supreme Court to decide the case. “I applaud the ongoing efforts of our Federal partners for keeping the ball moving forward on the swipe fee battle,” said Nate Filler, President & CEO of OGA.  “OGA urges the Supreme Court to take this case and bring fairness and transparency to merchants and their consumers who have been gouged with billions of dollars of fees. OGA will not rest until there is real reform for our members.” For more information please see communication from NACS.

Big Court Victory: Judge Throws out Controversial Cap on Swipe Fees

(August 1, 2013)  In a gigantic victory for grocers, U.S. District Judge Richard Leon invalidated the Federal Reserve’s 21-cent cap on debit card swipe fees, siding with merchants in their view that the fee is more than Congress had intended. The judge summarized that the rule is an “utterly indefensible” interpretation of the Dodd-Frank Act passed by Congress. While this initially is a big victory, we fully expect a federal appeal of this ruling to occur soon.  Furthermore, this should not be confused with the ongoing swipe fee settlement case as this ruling pertains merely to debit card swipe fees. OGA will continue to monitor this issue and further educate Washington lawmakers on the swipe fee issue.