The Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association (PFMA), the statewide association representing the food industry, praised the Pennsylvania Senate today for the passage of SB 489, which lowers the fees consumers pay for cashing government and government assistance checks, and eliminates the requirement that food stores must register with the national mortgage licensing system.
Senate Bill 489, introduced by Senator Gene Yaw (R-Bradford, Lycoming, Sullivan, Susquehanna and Union), protects consumers by requiring check cashers to post exact fees in plain view of the customer. It also caps those fees to a maximum of 1.5 percent of the face value of a government check and .5 percent of the face value of a government assistance check. In addition, the bill clarifies that retail food stores are not required by the Department of Banking and Securities to register with the national mortgage licensing system.
“Our thanks to the Senate for passing this bill that protects consumers and takes the unnecessary burden off food retailers, who will not be required to register with the mortgage licensing system,” said Alex Baloga, PFMA vice president of external relations.
A companion bill (HB 460), introduced by Representative Chris Ross (RChester), is currently under consideration in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
