Sean Hughes, Account Director, Connecticut Package Stores Association.
By Sean Hughes
Over the last several years, the Connecticut Package Stores Association (CPSA) has been engaged in high-profile legislative battles such as the fight against wine sales in grocery stores, the removal of minimum bottle pricing, beer sales in box stores and certain product bans. This year, CPSA and industry partners were successful in lobbying the General Assembly against many of these and some new proposals that would have been detrimental to our members.
The grassroots advocacy CPSA conducted throughout the summer and fall with current and new legislators was instrumental in securing industry support. These efforts have resulted in a relatively calm legislative session so far, allowing CPSA’s team the time and resources to work on proactive issues that would benefit the entire industry.
CPSA has joined a coalition with other retail organizations to tackle the critical issue of rising credit card fees. There is a bill before the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, Senate Bill (S.B.) 1460, “An Act Concerning Interchange Fees on Electronic Payment Transactions,” which would prohibit card companies from including the sales and use portion of a purchase from the total on which they charge interchange fees.
Currently, card companies can charge interchange fees on the cost of goods and services, plus the sales and use tax. By removing the sales and use tax from the calculated fee, this bill could save some businesses thousands of dollars each year.
S.B. 1460 faces significant opposition from both credit card companies and banks. The most recent state to pass such legislation was Illinois, which imposed similar limitations on what credit card networks and banks could charge retailers for interchange fees.
The coalition formed to support this bill is comprised of retailers from several different industries, proving that the issue of these high fees is rampant—and must be addressed. At a time when so many of the costs of doing business are rising, the passage of S.B. 1460 would provide some much-needed relief to all businesses, including the independently owned package stores of Connecticut.
To help support these efforts, please visit ctpsa.com/join-cpsa to join or donate.
