As predicted by banking execs across the country, a new federal law that takes effect Oct. 1 already has consumers picking up the tab for banks expecting to lose out on substantial revenues.
According to The Baton Rouge Business Report, Oct. 1 marks the start of new rules regarding swipe card fees, or the amount of money banks charge merchants for each debit card transaction.
Before the Dodd-Frank financial bill passed Congress with the included “Durbin Amendment” on swipe fees, banks charged an average of 44 cents for each transaction. The new 21-cent cap on swipe card fees is less than half of what banks were able to charge, prompting new banking fees for customers in an effort to recoup the losses.
Regions Bank South Louisiana Area President Danny Montelaro tells The Business Report that his bank expects to lose out on $9.5 million after the law takes effect, which is why the bank on Oct. 1 will begin charging $4 a month for its customers to use a debit card.
The Birmingham, Ala., based bank is introducing a handful of other fees for customers, though some of the increases can be waived if certain deposit and minimum balance requirements are met.
And Regions is not alone in its quest to recoup revenue. According to the Business Report, other banks such as Chase have made bold changes to counter the new law, while IberiaBank and Capital One remain tight-lipped on their strategies:
Chase Bank has done away with its rewards program, spokesman Greg Hassell says, but it has not added any fees for debit card use. On Aug. 24, Chase's Total Checking account—its most basic account, for which most new customers sign up—began charging a $12 monthly fee if minimum direct deposit and account balance requirements are not met.
But other banks with a presence in the Capital Region are reluctant to discuss the possibility of new fees. IberiaBank spokeswoman Beth Ardoin says no changes have been made to fee structures, adding that officials "see no benefit in getting involved in the conversation" about their strategy to recoup lost revenue from the swipe fee.
Read more from The Baton Rouge Business Report here.
For more on the uncertainty banks are feeling from the financial overhaul, read our June report from ABiz, “Regulatory Recession.”
MAY 23 Here's a story in the Picayune about some statistics that must come as a blow to folks who believe that any private school can do a better job of educating kids than any public school: Danielle Dreilinger reports that only 30 percent of the voucher kids are passing. That's less than half of the state wide average, she says. It's an interesting statistic because most of the schools (if not all) taking voucher kids have never had their students' standardized test scores released to the public before.
MAY 23 Stephen Sabludowsky blogs on Bayou Buzz about auditor requests here. Recently the state GOP started crowing about a request from the Legislative Auditor, claiming they were being targeted because of their anti-tax stance. (Uh, your what?) Denial and hyperbole aside, the state Democratic party blew holes in that theory with an email announcing they'd received the same request, Sabludowsky writes here.
MAY 23 Jim Brown blogs about the senate race in this post. He says that, given Bobby Jindal's "lack of traction" on the national stage, it might make more sense for the governor to consider running against Mary Landrieu for the senate seat. Since Tim Teeple left the Cassidy team, it makes sense he might land on a Jindal for Senate team, Brown opines.
MAY 23 In this Louisiana Voice post, blogger Tom Aswell writes of rumors that his nemesis, state Superintendent of Education John White, may be soon departing Louisiana for a federal post. It's hard to believe, given his performance, Aswell says, but stranger things have happened. An anti-White BESE member says that, if true, White is quitting before he can be fired.
MAY 23 In this post on American Zombie, blogger Jason Berry writes about the Mother's Day shooting. Mayor Landrieu said that "this is not who we are," but the fact is, this is New Orleans, Berry writes. The violence infused in the city is the result of a culture created by "sins of omission or sins of commission," Berry writes. It's not a problem that can be solved by legislating, policing, praying or publicizing, he says: Someone's got to understand what's happening first.
MAY 23 This post in the Westside Journal tells us what Port Allen Mayor Deedy has been up to lately: vetoing ordinances, apparently. This story is most interesting, however, when it delves into a petition that has been circulating around the city lately. It accuses the former mayor of a lot of nasty things; the former mayor says it is full of lies and "broken syntax" which may be a larger offense in his eyes.
MAY 23 This editorial posted in The Advocate is a bit confusing. The writing is poor - definitely not up to the usual editorial writing standard there - and the point is hard to grasp. Apparently, the writer is saying that privatization of state efforts is OK, as long as there is oversight and transparency, but Jindal's not good at that, and the legislature shouldn't over-react. Okey Dokey. Can't they get one of them Pulitzer-winning people to write an editorial?
MAY 23 This post on The Lens gives you links to a new Google Earth tool that allows you to see any spot on earth transform over the past 30 years. Bob Marshall, who covers the coast for the paper, says that in the case of Louisiana's coastline, it's possibly something you don't want to see, because it's not a pretty picture. There are several clips here, showing critical areas erode away. For Marshall, it was vindication for all those times he was met with eye-rolling when he talked about erosion.
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