Main Street is getting squeezed from every direction. The restaurant owner in Little Rock, the boutique in Fayetteville, the farmers' market vendor in Jonesboro--all of them are facing a variety of cost pressures that aren't easing up. But there's one cost that too few people notice: credit-card swipe fees.

Every time a customer swipes their card, the business pays anywhere from 2 to 4 percent in fees. While that may not sound like much, it adds up fast. Inflation acts as a multiplier, and over time, these credit-card fees become one of the largest expenses a small business faces--often second only to payroll. In 2024, the swipe fees totaled a record $187.2 billion.

This crisis stems from the unfair and uncompetitive payment system created by two powerful credit-card companies, Visa and Mastercard, and their big banking partners. They dictate what swipe fees every small business in America pays.

Small businesses often operate on razor-thin margins. In 2023, an Arkansas pest-control business owner shared that swipe fees cost him more than $33,000. While he hasn't passed those surcharges onto his customers, it's money he'd rather use on new equipment or in expanded benefits for his employees.

Why should two credit-card giants get to set the terms for nearly every transaction in the country? In a truly competitive market, one business should not dictate what one business must pay to another unrelated business.

By raising swipe fees year after year, Visa and Mastercard have effectively hogtied small businesses: They're forced to play by rules they didn't set, paying rates they can't negotiate.

This is no small thing to Main Street. In fact, a recent National Federation of Independent Business survey found that 92 percent of our small business owner members believe they should be able to pick the credit-card networks that process their transactions.

Main Street is counting on Congress to pass the bipartisan Credit Card Competition Act. Authored by Sens. Roger Marshall and Richard Durbin and Reps. Lance Gooden and Zoe Lofgren, the bill would provide immediate relief for small businesses by requiring banks to offer more than one credit-card network. Instead of being locked into Visa and Mastercard, small businesses could choose from multiple secure and independent networks.

Under this bill, there would be real competition among credit-card networks. Credit-card networks' fees would drop to retain their customers, easing pressure on Main Street.

Arkansas small businesses compete every day for their customers and employees. It's time the credit-card giants compete too. Lawmakers should pass the Credit Card Competition Act and give Main Street a fair shot.

Katie Burns is the state director for the National Federation of Independent Business in Arkansas, the state's largest small business advocacy organization.

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