Relating to collection of a service charge by a county or municipality for a dishonored credit card.
Impact
The enactment of HB 2922 will impact local laws regarding the collection of fees and fines associated with dishonored credit card payments. By empowering local governments to charge a service fee, the legislation will aid in recouping lost revenue resulting from failed transactions. This could potentially improve financial management for counties and municipalities, ensuring they can maintain their budgetary integrity despite payment issues from residents or businesses.
Summary
House Bill 2922 addresses the issue of service charges that can be imposed by counties and municipalities when a payment made via credit card is not honored. Specifically, the bill amends Section 132.004 of the Local Government Code to allow local governments to collect a service charge equivalent to that of a check returned for insufficient funds. This measure is intended to provide local authorities with a similar tool for managing dishonored credit card payments as they have for checks, creating a uniform approach across payment types.
Contention
Notable points of contention surrounding HB 2922 may arise from concerns about additional financial burdens imposed on individuals who use credit cards for transactions. Critics may argue that enforcing service charges could disproportionately affect low-income residents who rely on credit for essential services. Furthermore, there might be debates regarding the transparency and fairness of such charges, especially in cases where the digitized payment process fails and users are penalized unintentionally.
Relating to credit services organizations and extensions of consumer credit facilitated by credit services organizations; increasing a criminal penalty.
Relating to the regulation of money services businesses; creating a criminal offense; creating administrative penalties; authorizing the imposition of a fee.
Relating to a justice or municipal court's authority to order a defendant confined in jail for failure to pay a fine or cost or for contempt and to the authority of a municipality to enforce the collection of certain fines by imprisonment of the defendant.