Z Beauty Bar
I’ve built Z Beauty Bar from the ground up in the heart of downtown Tucson, and it hasn’t been easy. The constant juggling act of keeping a small business alive is a reality every Main Street owner knows. What makes it worthwhile is the community we’ve built and the clients who keep coming back.
Part of our success depends on a payment system that works seamlessly in the background. So when Congress starts tinkering with it, I pay attention.
The latest attempt involves the Durbin-Marshall credit mandates, which would force banks to issue credit cards on at least two payment networks, promising lower processing fees for small businesses. In theory, more competition sounds like a good thing. But if you look at the facts, the proposal is unlikely to actually lower costs for small businesses like mine. A University of Miami study found that nearly all of the bill’s financial benefits would go to retailers pulling in $500 million or more annually, the top five alone–Walmart, Home Depot, Costco, Kroger, and Amazon–would pocket $1.2 billion. Small businesses like Z Beauty Bar would get almost nothing.
What we would lose, though, is significant.
My business credit card is a working tool, not a luxury. I use it to order supplies, cover costs, and keep operations steady when revenue dips. The rewards I earn in the process help cover those gaps. Under the Durbin-Marshall bill, the interchange revenue that makes those rewards programs possible would shrink dramatically. That same University of Miami study estimates small businesses would collectively lose $1 billion in credit card rewards. That’s a significant loss for a small business that works hard to balance the books.
The bill also comes with serious security concerns. Exposing credit cards to smaller, little-known payment networks sounds like a minor change until you realize those networks simply don’t have the resources to invest in fraud prevention the way established ones we know and trust do. All it takes for a business to lose a valued customer is one breach or fraudulent transaction that shakes a client’s confidence.
In May, I traveled to Washington to make this case to Arizona’s Congressional delegation. I am encouraged that my message was heard, but the Durbin-Marshall bill could still see a vote in the future. Our representatives have a clear choice: side with corporations that measure their annual revenue in the billions, or side with the small business owners who are out here every day serving their neighbors and holding their communities together.
For the sake of small businesses everywhere, I hope Arizona’s leaders in Congress oppose the Durbin-Marshall credit card mandates.
Zamira Osorio
Owner
Z Beauty Bar
