News Releases
Alliance for Inflation Reduction Welcomes Bill Barring Credit Card ‘Swipe’ Fees on Sales & Excise Taxes That Drive Up Consumer Prices
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ATLANTA, February 10, 2023 – The Georgia Alliance for Inflation Reduction welcomed legislation introduced this week by state Senator Billy Hickman, R-Statesboro, that would bar credit card networks from charging millions of dollars in “swipe” fees on sales and excise taxes in an effort to ease inflation for Georgians.
“Charging swipe fees on top of taxes is simply a tax on a tax,” Georgia Retailers Vice President of Government Affairs Ben Cowart said. “Georgians are working hard in the face of near-record inflation. We need to do all we can to protect them against needless fees and charges.”
“The time has come to give Georgians a break and stop the California and New York-based card industry from unfairly taking hundreds of millions of hard-earned dollars out of our state’s economy,” Hickman said. “This legislation would create an economic stimulus at no cost to the state that would help merchants hold down future price increases, create jobs and invest in their communities, all for the benefit of Georgians who have been hit the hardest by the pandemic and inflation. It would also restore fairness to the state’s tax system by removing an unfair cost borne by merchants – and ultimately their customers – when they perform their state-mandated duty to collect these taxes.”
In a move to bring swipe fees on taxes under control, Hickman introduced the Consumer Inflation Reduction and Tax Fairness Act in the General Assembly.
The legislation would prohibit card networks – including Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover – from charging payment card swipe fees on any amount other than the base purchase price of goods and services, thereby barring swipe fees on sales, alcohol, tobacco and state motor fuel taxes. Violators would pay a civil penalty of at least $1,000 per incident to the retailer, not the state, and be required to refund any swipe fee collected on taxes.
Unknown to most consumers, merchants are charged a “swipe” fee averaging over 2% of the transaction – including the sales tax – every time a customer pays by credit card. Based on a $100 purchase, that would amount to about $2.25 if the fee only applied to the merchandise. But the fee also applies to the $7 sales tax, costing the merchant another 15 cents for a total of about $2.40. The fees are also applied to other state-mandated taxes, adding to the cost of each alcoholic drink, pack of cigarettes or gallon of gasoline purchased in Georgia.
According to the Federal Reserve, about a third of U.S. purchases are paid for by credit card. Based on state tax revenues, that means Georgia merchants and their customers pay an estimated $123.8 million in swipe fees on sales tax and another $16.6 million on excise taxes on average each year. Altogether, swipe fees collected on taxes amount to about $140 million a year, or about $36 a year for the average Georgia family.
The legislation was welcomed by Anthony Waters, owner of LA Waters Furniture in Statesboro.
“Swipe fees on everyday purchases drive up costs each year for the average Georgia business and charging these fees on the tax portion of a receipt costs us even more,” Waters said. “With supply chain disruptions, workforce shortages and rising inflation, ending swipe fees on the taxes would remove one of the endless pressures that small businesses are facing.”
Credit and debit card swipe fees add up quickly and have more than doubled over the past decade, soaring 25% in 2021 alone to a record $137.8 billion nationwide, according to the Nilson Report. The fees are most merchants’ highest operating cost after labor and must be built into pricing, driving up expenses for the average family by close to $1,000 a year, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition.
The Georgia legislation is part of a national move to bring swipe fees under control in a time of rampant inflation. Legislation pending in Congress would bring competition to how transactions are routed for processing and is expected to save merchants and their customers an estimated $11 billion a year.
About the Georgia Alliance for Inflation Reduction
The Georgia Alliance for Inflation Reduction represents retailers, small businesses, supermarkets, independent grocers, convenience stores, and other Georgia merchants who accept credit and debit cards. Members include the Georgia Retailers, Georgia Association of Convenience Stores, Georgia Food Industry Association, Georgia Restaurant Association, Georgia Hotel & Lodging Association, Georgia Agribusiness Council, and the National Federation of Independent Business.
Contact: Ben Cowart This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Georgia Retailers Selects Ben Cowart to Lead Association
The Georgia Retailers is pleased to announce the hiring of Ben Cowart as their new Vice President of Government Affairs. Cowart joins Georgia Retailers from Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA), where he has served as Senior External Affairs Manager since 2015. Beginning January 17, 2023, Ben can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Cowart brings a wealth of experience in government relations and grassroots advocacy, a host of strong relationships, and expertise in external communications and crafting political strategy.
“I am excited to join the Georgia Retailers team and advocate on behalf of Georgia’s 134,000 retailers," said Ben Cowart. "I look forward to working with the General Assembly and our partners to provide a strong unified voice for the retail industry. I’m eager for the opportunity to grow the association and promote the Georgia Retailers brand throughout the state of Georgia."
Cowart will work alongside local state and federal officials to address key issues in the retail industry and lead the development and implementation of the association’s strategic initiatives. Cowart will also manage the organization's political action committee.
Before joining GEFA, Cowart led business development initiatives and account management for healthcare organizations throughout the region.
Ben Cowart is an active member of the Georgia Chamber Government Affairs Council, a member of the Georgia Professional Lobbyist Association, and a graduate of the Zell Miller Leadership Institute.
Cowart is a Georgia native and an alumnus of the University of Georgia, where he received two degrees, a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing and a Master of Business Administration in Innovation/Entrepreneurship.
He and his wife, Charlotte, reside in Decatur, GA.
Eligible Georgians to Receive Virtual Cash Assistance Payments Beginning This Week
Beginning this week, the Georgia Department of Human Services (DHS) will provide cash assistance of up to $350 for active enrollees in Medicaid, PeachCare for Kids, SNAP, and/or TANF government benefit programs.
Georgians with email addresses registered with DHS will receive virtual payments by eGift card, this is separate from current benefit payment cards. Plastic cards will be mailed to eligible Georgians who do not have their email address listed in Gateway.
The virtual payment card is a Mastercard prepaid card that works exactly like a debit card – and will live in the recipient's digital wallet (Apple, Google, Samsung Wallets). The virtual payments can also be used via keyed entry anywhere that accepts Mastercard payments, not just online.
Click here to read the Governor's entire press release.
2022 Legislative Session: Week Twelve
There is now only one day left in the 2022 Session. Week Twelve saw movement on very important bills including legislation sponsored by Speaker David Ralston reforming mental health care in the state. That bill was passed by the Senate and Agreed to by the House. This action allowed numerous other bills that were being held by the two chambers to move forward.
There are still a number of bills left to be decided on including legislation to allow sports betting (and possibly other forms of gambling) in Georgia, Freedom to Farm legislation and more. The Senate and House are also wrangling over how large of an income tax cut to pass following a record year for state tax collections. The next few days will see long nights and lots of deals getting cut as legislators look to get these bills over the finish line.
SB 332-The Georgia Inform Consumers Act Passes by Overwhelming Margin
The Georgia Retailers' top priority during the 2022 Session, the Georgia Inform Consumers Act, was passed by the House on Monday of this week by a vote of 155-4. The Senate followed that action by agreeing to the House version on Wednesday.
The legislation, sponsored by Sen. John Albers of Roswell, will require online marketplaces to collect certain basic information from third-party sellers of new, unused items who make at least $5,000 in sales. SB 332 also requires third party sellers with $20,000 or more in annual sales to provide a phone number, email or other form of direct contact between the buyer and seller.
The legislation will give consumers access to more information about the third-party sellers they are buying from. Many third party sellers take advantage of the anonymity currently offered by online platforms hiding behind trusted brands like Amazon and ebay to sell stolen merchandise to unknowing consumers. In addition, the new law gives law enforcement another tool to track and fight organized retail crime.
The GA Retailers would like to thank the members who came to the Capitol to help lobby the bill and speak in favor of it during committee hearings. We also need to thank the members of the Senate and House who supported the legislation. Members can see how legislators from their district voted on the bill by clicking on the Votes section at the bottom of this page.
Legislative Schedule
The General Assembly has now completed 39 Legislative Days of the 40 Day Session.
Next week’s schedule is as follows:
- Saturday (4/2) – Committee Day
- Sunday (4/3) – Committee Day
- Monday (4/4) – Legislative Day 40/Sine Die!
2022 Legislative Session: Week Eleven
Week Eleven of the 2022 Session is in the books. The budget has now been passed by the Senate which means that the negotiation can begin between the House and Senate on how much money each program or project is going to receive in the coming fiscal year. Getting the budget agreed on by both sides is a discussion that occurs at the highest levels with the Appropriations Chairs and Majority Leaders of the House and Senate serving on the Conference Committee.
As we get closer to the end of Session, conference committees are now being tasked with reconciling different versions of bills that are passed. This process starts when a bill passes both chambers but with different language. Even a slight difference means that the bill is in limbo until the final language is agreed to by both Chambers. Either chamber can Recede from its position and allow the other chamber’s language to be the final version. This allows the bill to move forward to the Governor.
If the House and Senate both insist on the language, a conference committee is appointed with three members from each. Those members negotiate the language, and the bill can look very different when they are finished. If a majority of the conference committee comes to an agreement on the final product, they issue a conference committee report that both the House and Senate must again pass with a majority of the members.
The Agree/Disagree and Conference Committee process offers many opportunities for new twists and turns in the making of legislation.
Georgia Inform Consumers Act Receives
Do Pass Recommendation; Scheduled for Floor Debate on Monday, March 28
SB 332, the Georgia Inform Consumers Act, was passed by the House Judiciary Committee by substitute on Tuesday of this week. The Committee included language sought by Amazon that would clarify that the “unhindered” communication between consumers and third-party sellers did not prevent them from monitoring the chat function their platform provides and acting on any abusive behavior through the chat function. Georgia Retailers argued against the change with committee members prior to the meeting because of concerns that it could be used by the company to cut off communication between a consumer with a legitimate complaint and a seller who didn’t want to resolve the complaint.
Despite that small change, the bill remains overwhelmingly positive for the retail industry and consumers. The legislation was heard in the Rules Committee today and placed on the calendar for Floor Debate and a vote in the House on Monday. Rep. Houston Gaines of Athens will present the bill on the floor and answer any questions that other Representatives may have.
Assuming SB 332 passes, the bill would then go back to the Senate for an Agree or Disagree motion. An Agree motion that succeeds would send the bill to the Governor for his signature or veto. The Governor has 40 days following the end of Session to review legislation and make a decision on the bill.
Legislative Schedule
The General Assembly has now completed 35 Legislative Days of the 40 Day Session.
Next week’s schedule is as follows:
- Monday (3/28) – Legislative Day 36
- Tuesday (3/29) – Legislative Day 37
- Wednesday (3/30) – Legislative Day 38
- Thursday (3/31)– Committee Day
- Friday (4/1)– Legislative Day 39