Sept. 13, 2012 – House Financial Services Chairman Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., poised to speak at the NAFCU Congressional Caucus today, is urging Senate leaders to act on the NAFCU-backed H.R. 4367 to end the dual disclosure requirement for ATM fees.
Passed by the House July 9 on a vote of 371-0, H.R. 4367 would end the requirement for ATM owners to affix placards on their machines to disclose fees. The requirement to disclose fees on screen, when the consumer can still cancel the transaction, would remain intact.
NAFCU and others want the placard requirement repealed to stop frivolous lawsuits against ATM owners when a placard is stolen or defaced. Failure to maintain the placard opens an ATM owner to possible class action and penalties up to $500,000, plus attorneys’ fees and costs – enough to discourage some ATM owners from continuing the service.
Bachus, slated to speak today before the NAFCU Congressional Caucus, said H.R. 4367 “is a model for what Congress should be doing: it is pro-consumer; it eliminates unnecessary red tape; it fixes a real problem; and it is bipartisan.” The bill, introduced this April, has 145 cosponsors.
Bachus’ letter went to Senate Majority Harry Reid, D-Nev., Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Senate Banking Chairman Tim Johnson, D-S.D., Senate Banking Ranking Member Richard Shelby, R-Ala., and House Financial Services Ranking Member Barney Frank, D-Mass.