Palmetto State News

Marli Collier, managing director at Airlines for America (A4A), said the proposed Durbin-Marshall Credit Card Competition Act would negatively impact South Carolina's travel industry and economic health.

“Airline credit card rewards play an invaluable role in helping to grow South Carolina's travel and tourism industry," Collier told Palmetto State News. "Consumers love their rewards cards because they get great value with them, but the Durbin-Marshall Credit Card Competition Act would threaten credit card rewards programs, undermine jobs and negatively impact economic growth across South Carolina. Lawmakers in Congress must consider the negative impact that this legislation will have on the consumers and communities across the country that benefit from airline credit cards.”

More than 172,000 travelers used credit card reward points to visit South Carolina in 2022, according to a report released by airline trade group Airlines for America (A4A).

The report said that 172,165 visitors used credit card reward points to visit the state in 2022, which supported 2,095 South Carolina jobs and had a total economic impact of $260.2 million.

These numbers were compiled via a survey of A4A’s member companies. 

Based in Washington, D.C., A4A is a trade association representing major U.S. airlines. It was founded in 1936 as the Air Transport Association of America (ATA) and rebranded as A4A in 2011. 

The group said almost one in four U.S. households has an airline credit card, and 63% of total frequent flier points earned in 2022 by consumers were generated by their use of an airline credit card.

Nationally, airline credit card rewards were used for 15 million domestic visitor trips that had an impact of more than $23 billion in 2022, according to the A4A report. 

S. 1838, the "Credit Card Competition Act of 2023," originally sponsored by U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) would require banks to offer merchants at least two network options, one of which cannot be Visa or Mastercard, for processing credit card transactions. 

Based in Washington, D.C., A4A is a trade association representing major U.S. airlines. It was founded in 1936 as the Air Transport Association of America (ATA) and rebranded as A4A in 2011. 

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What’s the travel and tourism impact of credit card rewards in each state?

Source: Airlines for America

State	Visitors using Airline Credit Card Points	Number of jobs supported by visitors using points	Total economic impact (in $M)
Alabama	41,815	610	61.3
Alaska	135,254	1,548	170.8
Arizona	597,676	8,221	916.3
Arkansas	29,187	406	41.9
California	2,065,209	23,375	3,360.70
Colorado	719,672	9,548	1,191.60
Connecticut	54,002	523	78.2
Delaware	9	0	0
Florida	2,419,136	31,234	3,756.10
Georgia	385,251	5,690	650.6
Hawaii	611,618	6,585	857.8
Idaho	66,162	925	90
Illinois	530,103	6,218	920.6
Indiana	80,456	1,057	123.5
Iowa	26,096	342	36.7
Kansas	13,822	185	20.7
Kentucky	88,607	992	130.6
Louisiana	185,866	2,112	270.9
Maine	44,182	579	62.1
Maryland	177,060	1,730	254.8
Massachusetts	323,244	3,300	483.6
Michigan	181,273	2,299	276.3
Minnesota	160,663	2,356	260.8
Mississippi	15,552	197	21.3
Missouri	259,597	3,654	414.6
Montana	88,965	1,240	112.8
Nebraska	49,736	703	72
Nevada	808,863	8,841	1,162.90
New Hampshire	21,439	229	29.1
New Jersey	198,495	2,090	315.4
New Mexico	85,332	1,191	114.6
New York	745,936	7,455	1,121.50
North Carolina	268,461	3,837	423.6
North Dakota	10,690	132	14.3
Ohio	147,047	2,070	237.5
Oklahoma	77,712	1,151	116.8
Oregon	210,668	2,658	300.2
Pennsylvania	224,264	3,012	359.6
Rhode Island	44,224	485	61.9
South Carolina	172,165	2,095	260.2
South Dakota	11,871	149	16.1
Tennessee	319,498	3,942	532.8
Texas	1,141,908	14,927	1,966.50
Utah	236,940	3,570	381.4
Vermont	14,517	185	19.3
Virginia	79,956	1,022	119.8
Washington	437,141	4,670	655.4
West Virginia	2,868	32	3.7
Wisconsin	85,045	1,233	126.8
Wyoming	22,635	247	27.5

This table summarizes the impact of visitors using airline credit card points by state in 2022.