House Dems Call For DOJ Investigation Into Debit Card Fees

By Janie Amaya

A collection of House Democrats urgedAttorney General Eric Holder Thursday to open an investigation that would determine whether banks are violating antitrust laws by adding on monthly fees for debit card users.

Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) said that soon after Congress and the Federal Reserve Board took consumer protection actions limiting the ability for banks to collude with networks and set debit card fees, the banks quickly announced their intent of off-setting revenue loss through the consumer.

Welch, noting that only the Attorney General has the capacity to bring any violations to light, emphasize than when financial institutions work together to establish uncompetitive prices, competition is compromised.

“Credit cards and debit cards are very important to commerce and they provide great convenance to consumers, but they should be offered at a fair price; the price being established through competition,” Welch said during a press conference.

“There is enormous historical evidence of banks using their monopoly power to impose unfair anti-competitive burden on their depositors and on consumers,” Welch added.

Also present, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) said, “When people in authority inspect, other folks will respect, and so having the attorney general look into whether there are anticompetitive practices will signal to the market that look, you can not engage in collusion.”

The representatives said they don’t have the capacity to draw to immediate findings of any violations by the banks, but said U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder does and should therefore should  an investigation.