The ATMIA 2023 Washington, DC Fly-In: Educating Legislators on ATM Industry Issues and Concerns

On April 20, 2023, ATMIA attended the fourth Washington, DC Fly-in. What is the Fly-In? It is an opportunity to meet with legislators and staff and help them better understand the ATM industry and its issues. The participants included:

• David Tente, Executive Director, ATMIA, USA
• Hayden Cole, Pathward
• Dustin Fusillo, Bell ATM
• Gianni del Vechio, Klear Technologies
• Greg Favitta, CipherTrace/MasterCard

It has been the tradition of this event to host a strategy meeting the day before meeting with Congress and Senate members on Capitol Hill. The meeting provided everyone with time to get to know each other and their perspectives on the issues we have in common.

We had five meetings. Read a brief synopsis of each:

– Congressman John Rose (TN) and his legislative counsel, Graham Conlan:  We have met with Rose several times now, and he is always very welcoming, friendly, and interested in our issues.  Although we brought up the topic of ATM crime during our meeting last year, he knew very little about it. However, he ended up co-sponsoring the Safe Access to Cash Act last October.

Congressman Rose remains very supportive of an increase in ATM crime penalties. He informed us that he is looking for a Democrat member of the Judiciary Committee to co-sponsor a re-introduction of the bill. He is hopeful that could happen by June.

The Payment Choice Act: Rep. Rose still supports the Payment Choice Act but is uncertain about its future. He is also working on the framework of a stablecoin bill and does not see much happening regarding a CBDC.

– Sam Millwood, legislative aide for Congressman Barry Loudermilk (GA): We familiarized him with our industry and key issues and explained how our piece of the independent ATM industry works.

– Rebecca Alcorn, Senior Policy Adviser to Senator Mike Crapo (Republican on the Finance Committee): She informed us that Mr. Crapo is not fully supportive of bans on cashless retail but would ask that he take another look at it. We stressed the importance of the financial inclusion aspect of that bill and as a back-up for failed payment systems.

Senator Crapo is very interested in the ATM crime issue and would support it if introduced. We informed Rebecca of our conversation with Rep Rose and his expectation that the measure would be introduced by June.

– Keegan Zimprich, legislative assistant for Senator Kevin Cramer (ND): Senator Cramer is actively working to re-introduce the Payment Choice Act. NRF (National Retail Federation) had voiced some strong opposition to the bill when first introduced, but changes have been made to the language. NRFs position has shifted to neutral. The Senator thinks it will get introduced and passed this year.

Keegan was not familiar with the ATM crime bill but was certain that Senator Cramer would support it. In his opinion, the House will take the lead with anything having to do with stablecoin.

– Senator Ben Ray Lujan (NM) and Sophia Bock, legislative aide: Senator Lujan is not on any of the primary committees of interest to ATMIA – Banking, Finance, and Judiciary, but he is on the Commerce Committee, which we mentioned, as a lead-in to a discussion of the Payment Choice Act. 

Senator Lujan, too, raised the question of business rights to operate freely as a potential objection. We again emphasized the importance of consumer rights and financial inclusion. He will be discussing the bill with Representative Payne.

Senator Lujan was not familiar with the ATM crime bill but was eager to talk about it and will likely support it. Senator Lujan sits on a crypto committee in the Senate. That presented a great opportunity to voice our concerns about future regulation of the industry, as well as offer to discuss the issues in more detail.

It was a successful event and objectives were accomplished. Planning for the 2024 Fly-in will begin this, Summer.  Anyone interested in sponsoring the 2024 event should contact David Tente. The earlier we receive a sponsor commitment, the longer the sponsor receives credit for their support.

Once thanks again to Paramount Management Group for sponsoring the 2023 Fly-in.

Best regards to all,
David