Durbin Delivers Remarks On His Credit Card Competition Act At National Restaurant Association Conference
Following his remarks, Durbin met with Illinois members of the National Restaurant Association
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today delivered remarks and participated in a fireside chat at the National Restaurant Association’s annual conference. In his remarks, Durbin spoke about his bipartisan legislation, the Credit Card Competition Act, which would enhance competition and choice in the credit card network market that is currently dominated by the Visa-Mastercard duopoly. Building off of debit card competition reforms enacted by Congress in 2010, the bill would direct the Federal Reserve to ensure that giant credit card-issuing banks offer a choice of at least two networks over which an electronic credit transaction may be processed. If enacted, the legislation would save merchants and consumers an estimated $15 billion each year.
Following his remarks, Durbin met with Illinois members of the National Restaurant Association to discuss the impact of swipe fees on their businesses. In 2023, merchants paid nearly $101 billion in Visa-Mastercard credit card fees, becoming one of the most expensive costs of operating a business.
Photos of Durbin delivering his remarks and with Illinois members of the National Restaurant Association can be found here.
Durbin’s remarks as prepared for delivery are below:
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin Remarks at National Restaurant Association Conference
April 2, 2025
As prepared for delivery
Thank you to all of the business owners and restaurant operators for joining us today. It is an honor to be here.
We are here in large part to talk about my Credit Card Competition Act—legislation that would add much-needed competition into the credit card market and reduce the excessive swipe fees that hurt businesses and consumers around the country.
After helping lead the passage of the Durbin Amendment—legislation that capped interchange fees for debit card transactions—I heard from business owners across the country that there was still work to be done.
The main area of reform this time? Swipe fees for credit cards.
Don from Alabama shared with my office that swipe fees represent approximately 10 percent of his total expenses for the gas stations he owns and operates—the number one item on his expense list.
Another small business owner, George, owns a convenience store on the Florida Gulf Coast. After covering the cost of goods, the swipe fees he pays often consume the entirety of his gross profit on single-item transactions—leaving him with nothing.
Jignesh from Chattanooga, Tennessee, said that the cost of credit card fees his gas station pays is almost as much as paying for one to one-and-a-half employees.
The same predatory practices that led to the debit card reform are happening in the credit card space and business owners like you are feeling the hurt.
In the next few days, you’ll meet with various Senators, Congressmen and women, and staff.
In those meetings, I challenge you to tell your stories. Tell your representative how swipe fees take up a huge portion of your budget, how they prevent you from lowering prices, and how you are not able to hire additional employees.
Your stories have the ability to create change, and they need to be heard.
Because the big banks, Wall Street, the Credit Card industry, all of the people who told us that debit card reform was impossible are again paying a pretty penny to tell a false story to Americans that the Credit Card Competition Act will hurt consumers.
But they are wrong. The legislation will give a fighting chance to restaurants like yours, support the mom-and-pop shops that make our communities feel whole, and ultimately keep money in the pockets of hardworking Americans.
Just like we did with debit cards, we have an opportunity to reform the credit card industry and protect Americans from being exploited by the Big Banks.
It is an honor to be your partner in this fight. I look forward to chatting about how we can get it done together today.
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