Palmetto State News

Marli Collier, managing director of Airlines 4 America (A4A), said policymakers should protect credit card travel reward programs from “unnecessary regulations,” as the U.S. Senate now considers two bills that could impact such programs for South Carolina residents. 

U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) last month introduced the “Protect Your Points” Act, which comes in addition to his proposed “Credit Card Competition Act” (CCCA) that Collier said could threaten credit card rewards programs for South Carolinians.

“Airline credit card rewards play an invaluable role in helping to grow South Carolina's travel and tourism industry," Collier told Palmetto State News in August. "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.”

The CCCA, S. 1838, would require banks to offer merchants at least two network options, one of which cannot be Visa or Mastercard, for processing credit card transactions. 

In addition to impacting credit card reward programs, opponents of the bill say that if given the choice, retailers would likely choose cheaper, less secure networks for processing transactions, thereby exposing consumers to increased securities and fraud risks.  

More than 172,000 travelers used credit card reward points to visit South Carolina in 2022, according to a report released by Collier’s group.  

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. 

Durbin’s new bill would empower the U.S. Department of Transportation and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to enforce new regulations and mandates on airlines, such as prohibiting accrued aware points and miles from expiring, requiring airlines to give a one-years head notice to consumers of any changes to terms of service with frequent flyer programs, new mandates requiring disclosing the financial value of points-per-mile on web sites, among other provisions.

"U.S. airlines have been working to Protect Our Points for years against those working to eliminate these loyalty programs,” Collier told Palmetto State News. “Consumers have the power of choice when selecting an airline, and carriers want to reward travelers for their return business and brand loyalty.”

“Because there is fierce competition among airlines for customers, loyalty programs are a way carriers can say ‘thank you’ to travelers,” she said. “Millions of people voluntarily opt-in to enjoy various loyalty programs, which allow them to accumulate rewards to apply toward travel or other benefits.”

Collier said that the airline industry is not the only one using rewards or loyalty programs, citing big box retailers, hotels, restaurants and small businesses. 

“U.S. airlines are transparent about these programs, and policymakers should recognize their popularity and work to ensure that unnecessary regulation doesn’t eliminate them,” said Collier.

Durbin and U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), the other sponsor of the CCCA, held a hearing in May focused on credit card rewards programs. 

The Electronic Payments Coalition (EPC), a group representing U.S. banks, credit unions, and payment card networks, said the hearing was requested by Durbin and Marshall as “retribution” for airlines’ opposition to the CCCA. 

“This hearing is just the latest stop on Senators Durbin and Marshall’s ongoing retribution tour,” said EPC Chair Richard Hunt in a statement. “When the tide is against them, they resort to weaponizing the federal government against American companies opposing their attempts to place new government mandates on your credit card.”

S. 1838 is currently pending in the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.