An Act regarding credit card surcharging
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Progress
Where this bill stands in the legislative process.
- Introduced
- Passed House
- Passed Senate
- To Governor
- Became Law
Overview
This bill would allow businesses in Massachusetts to charge customers an additional fee for using credit cards instead of paying with cash or debit cards. Currently, Massachusetts law prohibits merchants from adding surcharges to credit card transactions. This legislation aims to give businesses more flexibility in managing their payment processing costs, potentially leading to lower prices for consumers.
Key provisions
- Allows businesses to charge a surcharge for credit card transactions.
- The surcharge cannot exceed the merchant’s cost of processing the credit card transaction.
- Businesses must clearly disclose the surcharge to customers before completing a transaction.
- The surcharge cannot be applied to all credit cards equally.
- The surcharge must be applied consistently to similar transactions.
- The law does not apply to debit card transactions.
Who is affected
- Businesses
- Consumers
- Credit card companies
- Massachusetts merchants
Notable changes
- Reverses the existing ban on credit card surcharges in Massachusetts.
- Establishes rules regarding the amount and disclosure of surcharges.
Bill text
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Sponsors
Official sponsors from legislative records.
4 on record
Primary sponsor
James M. Murphy
Cosponsors
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