The Republican author of a bill to roll back Obama-era financial regulations has agreed to remove a controversial provision concerning debit-card swipe fees that had divided GOP lawmakers and threatened to derail passage of the sweeping legislation next month, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, agreed to remove a provision that repealed a cap on debit-card transaction fees known as the Durbin amendment — an issue that pits retailers and banks against each other and was bitterly fought as the legislation progressed to the House floor. “We won’t let this one provision hinder passage of an important priority bill,” Hensarling said. While the Choice Act is now expected to pass the House along party lines in early June, it faces dim prospects in the Senate, where Republicans are writing their own legislation to ease financial regulations.
