This week, during a House Financial Services Committee hearing titled, “Oversight of Prudential Regulators,” Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-3) spoke to witnesses on the repercussions of the misguided Credit Card Competition Act.

Rep. Luetkemeyer: “Last year, the Durbin Debit Rule was cited by the Government Accountability Office as causing significant damage to checking account access. Research is conclusive that merchants never lowered consumer prices in response to the Fed’s rule, and community banks have borne the brunt of this harmful regulation. I believe the number is 98% of money did not go back to consumers, as merchants had promised. In fact, in a February 2011 investor call, a Home Depot CFO reported the rule would increase their profits by $35 million in that year. Obviously, they didn’t intend on giving the money back either.”

Watch the video HERE.

Background: On October 25, 2023, the Federal Reserve held an open meeting to discuss revisions to the debit interchange cap that was included in the Durbin Amendment of the 2012 Dodd-Frank Act. A recent Government Accountability Office study found that the cap caused significant damage to consumer access to checking accounts. The Credit Card Competition Act introduced in the House and Senate seeks to place similar, equally misguided restrictions on credit cards.

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