Keep the Durbin Amendment in the Wall Street Bill

Mr. WELCH. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster) and I are speaking to you today about credit card relief for small businesses and merchants, and as we are, credit card lobbyists are roaming the halls trying to water down a very key provision in the Wall Street reform legislation. They know that if the conferees keep the Durbin swipe fee amendment in the bill, small business and consumers will gain, and the monopoly pricing of the credit card industry will lose.

Just yesterday, several Vermont small business owners told me how much the credit card and debit swipe fees are hurting their business. Katy Lesser, who owns Healthy Living Market in Burlington, told me her business paid $250,000 in fees last year. This year it will be $350,000. And Sheryl Trainor, who runs a Mobil station in Queechee, told me she could plow the money she spends on swipe fees into better wages and more jobs.

I call on my colleagues in the conference committee to put small businesses before the credit card industry and maintain the Durbin amendment in the final package.

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