Swipe Fees

  

From the National Retail Federation, J. Craig Shearman, December 13, 2013

"A federal judge today approved a controversial settlement of an antitrust lawsuit over credit card swipe fees, dismissing objections from NRF and thousands of others as "needless hyperbole" and praising a provision for surcharges even though it has been widely rejected by major retailers across the country.

"The oral presentations of the objectors at the fairness hearing were afflicted by needless hyperbole," Judge U.S. District Court Judge John Gleeson said, citing arguments that "cast Visa and MasterCard as modern-day Nazis and warned me not to assume the role of Neville Chamberlain."

"If only the issues here were that simple," the Brooklyn judge wrote in a 55-page opinion. "But in reality the vitriol and poor behavior and feigned hysteria mask complex and difficult issues on which reasonable merchants can and do disagree. Some of those issues stem from the fact that a lawsuit is an imperfect vehicle for addressing the wrongs the plaintiffs allege."

Gleeson cited a "small number of objectors" to the settlement even though it was formally rejected by more than 8,000 merchants including many of the nation's largest and best-known brands. The lawsuit was originally brought by 19 retailers and trade associations, but all but nine rejected the proposed settlement when it was unveiled in 2012. Most of those remaining were individual stores or small chains. NRF was not a party to the suit, but has fought the settlement because its class-action status would impose its terms on thousand of federation members.

"We are very disappointed that this deeply flawed settlement has been approved," NRF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Mallory Duncan said. "It is not supported by the retail industry and would do nothing to reduce swipe fees or keep them from rising in the future. The settlement permanently ties the hands of thousands of businesses who wanted nothing to do with this misguided case, and a decision to approve it violates established law and common sense."

"We will confer with our members, but given the amount of anger toward this settlement, I fully expect we will appeal," Duncan said. " 

The Minnesota Retailers Association opposed approval of this settlement.

 

	Read the full article.

E-Fairness

From the Retail Industry Leaders Association, December 11, 2013

"On November 19, the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy released a report entitled "An Analysis of Internet Sales Taxation and the Small Seller Exemption," in which authors Donald Bruce and William F. Fox found that if small sellers under $1 million are exempted from e-fairness legislation, that the legislation would exempt 99.96% of all sellers.  (The Marketplace Fairness Act as passed by the Senate (S. 743), and as introduced in the House of Representatives (H.R. 684), both set exemption thresholds at $1 million.) 

When broken out by sectors, the report finds that at the $1 million exemption level less than 4.5% of electronic shopping and mail order houses, and less than 2 percent of all non-store retailers, would be affected.  The report is helpful to our advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill to pass efairness legislation by showing that the vast majority of small businesses would be exempted from the legislation."

State Budgets

From Bloomberg, William Sellway, December 10, 2013
 
"U.S. states are cutting taxes and increasing spending as the improving economy lifts their revenue, marking a recovery from the financial strains that persisted after the recession.

Spending by state governments is set to climb 3.8 percent to $722 billion during the current budget year, the fourth straight annual increase, according to a report released today by the National Association of State Budget Officers. With more money on hand, 23 states cut taxes or took other steps that reduced revenue, and 42 boosted funding for schools.

"State fiscal conditions are modestly improving," the Washington-based budget officers group said in the report. "Signs of fiscal distress continue to subside, and most states expect revenue and spending growth in fiscal 2014."

The financial gains are lifting a drag on the economy after the 18-month recession that ended in 2009, during which states eliminated jobs and cut spending to make up for declining revenue. In the six months through September, U.S. economic growth advanced partly because of increases in state and local government spending, according to the Commerce Department.

This year, 16 states faced shortfalls totaling $6.4 billion. That's down from $37 billion a year earlier, according to the budget officers' report. For the next fiscal year, ten states are forecasting shortfalls, amounting to $4.4 billion. The fiscal year ends in June for all but four states."

 

	Read the full article.

The Minnesota Retailers Association (MnRA) has leveraged the collective clout of our members to offer increased savings on the products and services essential to retailers. These vital products and services help Minnesota retailers navigate the often complicated terrain of operating as a retailer.

Thank you for your patience as we redesign the web presence of the RetailPlus+ Buying Group in the coming weeks.

Question on the program? Contact the MnRA staff at (651) 227-6631.  
 

Minnesota Retailers Associaiton

400 Robert Street North, suite 1540

St. Paul, MN 55101

Tel. (651) 227-6631 - mnretail.org - mnra@mnretail.org

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