The following content is sponsored by the Electronic Payments Coalition.
Millions of American households depend on credit card rewards to help cover everyday essentials such as groceries, gas, and back-to-school supplies.
Yet, earlier this month, the Biden administration’s Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and Department of Transportation (DOT) held a joint hearing to scrutinize credit card and airline reward programs. This hearing was not intended to protect American consumers but rather to weaponize the federal government against American companies opposing efforts by Sens. Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) to put new government mandates on your credit card.
The bill’s proponents, in lockstep with the Biden administration, are pushing their detrimental credit card legislation, which stands to benefit only corporate megastores like Walmart, Target, and Amazon. If passed, the bill is likely to restrict card issuer’s ability to fund rewards programs Americans of all income levels rely on, especially during record-high inflation.
To combat this narrative, the CFPB released a politically motivated report in conjunction with their retaliatory hearing.
While the CFPB commonly asserts reward points and programs are devalued, its own report confoundingly admits that the average value of rewards consumers have earned has grown between 2019 and 2022. Moreover, it highlights consumers earned more than $40 billion in rewards on major issuers’ general purpose credit cards in 2022, an increase of over 50 percent from 2019.
American consumers—especially low-to-moderate-income (LMI) families—are certainly cashing in on these rewards, despite the CFPB’s claims they are not of value or being fully utilized by consumers. A recent study reported rewards card ownership has increased across all income levels over the last four years, particularly among LMI cardholders (62.2 percent to 69.2 percent).
The CFPB also alleges that reward programs are complex, but in reality, most cardholders find them easy to understand and tend to take full advantage of them. A recent Electronic Payments Coalition (EPC) report found an overwhelming 96 percent of cardholders find their rewards program very or somewhat valuable, making rewards cards one of the most popular products in the financial industry.
Lastly, the CFPB’s report claims reward programs do not justify the cost. However, an analysis from the American Bankers Association’s (ABA) says that card rewards are accessible, valuable, and well-understood by consumers across all income levels.
So, what is the truth?
Following the hearing, conservative leaders are voicing their opposition to Sens. Durbin and Marshall’s decision to weaponize the CFPB. They recognize this alliance for what it is: a retaliatory move against American companies who rightfully oppose new government mandates on how your credit card works.
It’s time to take a stand against Sens. Durbin and Marshall, along with their administration allies, for their blatant attempts to penalize those who do not agree with this harmful bill.
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