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MarketwatchMerchants may pay smaller fees on customers' debit-card transactions following a vote in the Senate.
Senators voted 64-33 Thursday to approve an amendment, sponsored by Sen. Richard Durbin (D., Ill.) as part of a larger bank-reform bill, that would direct the Federal Reserve to issue rules to ensure that fees charged to cover transaction-processing costs are "reasonable and proportional" to the costs incurred.
"Wall Street reform is really about two things: holding the big banks accountable for how they operate and empowering consumers to make good financial choices," Durbin said in a statement.
"By requiring debit card fees to be reasonable ... small businesses and their customers will be able to keep more of their own money," he added. "Making sure small businesses can grow and prosper is vital to putting our country back on solid economic footing."
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http://www.marketwatch.com/story/senators-ok-debit-regulation-in-bank-reform-2010-05-14?dist=countdown