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15 U.S. Code § 1693o-2. Reasonable fees and rules for payment card transactions
(a) Reasonable interchange transaction fees for electronic debit transactions
(1) Regulatory authority over interchange transaction fees
The Board may prescribe regulations, pursuant to section 553 of title 5, regarding any interchange transaction fee that an issuer may receive or charge with respect to an electronic debit transaction, to implement this subsection (including related definitions), and to prevent circumvention or evasion of this subsection.
(2) Reasonable interchange transaction fees
The amount of any interchange transaction fee that an issuer may receive or charge with respect to an electronic debit transaction shall be reasonable and proportional to the cost incurred by the issuer with respect to the transaction.
(3) Rulemaking required
(A) In general
The Board shall prescribe regulations in final form not later than 9 months after July 21, 2010, to establish standards for assessing whether the amount of any interchange transaction fee described in paragraph (2) is reasonable and proportional to the cost incurred by the issuer with respect to the transaction.
(B) Information collection
The Board may require any issuer (or agent of an issuer) or payment card network to provide the Board with such information as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this subsection and the Board, in issuing rules under subparagraph (A) and on at least a bi-annual basis thereafter, shall disclose such aggregate or summary information concerning the costs incurred, and interchange transaction fees charged or received, by issuers or payment card networks in connection with the authorization, clearance or settlement of electronic debit transactions as the Board considers appropriate and in the public interest.
(4) Considerations; consultationIn prescribing regulations under paragraph (3)(A), the Board shall—
(A) consider the functional similarity between—
(i)
electronic debit transactions; and
(ii)
checking transactions that are required within the Federal Reserve bank system to clear at par;
(B) distinguish between—
(i)
the incremental cost incurred by an issuer for the role of the issuer in the authorization, clearance, or settlement of a particular electronic debit transaction, which cost shall be considered under paragraph (2); and
(ii)
other costs incurred by an issuer which are not specific to a particular electronic debit transaction, which costs shall not be considered under paragraph (2); and
(C)
consult, as appropriate, with the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Director of the Office of Thrift Supervision, the National Credit Union Administration Board, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, and the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.
(5) Adjustments to interchange transaction fees for fraud prevention costs
(A) AdjustmentsThe Board may allow for an adjustment to the fee amount received or charged by an issuer under paragraph (2), if—
(i)
such adjustment is reasonably necessary to make allowance for costs incurred by the issuer in preventing fraud in relation to electronic debit transactions involving that issuer; and
(ii) the issuer complies with the fraud-related standards established by the Board under subparagraph (B), which standards shall—
(I)
be designed to ensure that any fraud-related adjustment of the issuer is limited to the amount described in clause (i) and takes into account any fraud-related reimbursements (including amounts from charge-backs) received from consumers, merchants, or payment card networks in relation to electronic debit transactions involving the issuer; and
(II)
require issuers to take effective steps to reduce the occurrence of, and costs from, fraud in relation to electronic debit transactions, including through the development and implementation of cost-effective fraud prevention technology.
(B) Rulemaking required
(i) In general
The Board shall prescribe regulations in final form not later than 9 months after July 21, 2010, to establish standards for making adjustments under this paragraph.
(ii) Factors for considerationIn issuing the standards and prescribing regulations under this paragraph, the Board shall consider—
(I)
the nature, type, and occurrence of fraud in electronic debit transactions;
(II)
the extent to which the occurrence of fraud depends on whether authorization in an electronic debit transaction is based on signature, PIN, or other means;
(III)
the available and economical means by which fraud on electronic debit transactions may be reduced;
(IV)
the fraud prevention and data security costs expended by each party involved in electronic debit transactions (including consumers, persons who accept debit cards as a form of payment, financial institutions, retailers and payment card networks);
(V)
the costs of fraudulent transactions absorbed by each party involved in such transactions (including consumers, persons who accept debit cards as a form of payment, financial institutions, retailers and payment card networks);
(VI)
the extent to which interchange transaction fees have in the past reduced or increased incentives for parties involved in electronic debit transactions to reduce fraud on such transactions; and
(VII)
such other factors as the Board considers appropriate.