WASHINGTON – Tuesday, the House of Representatives unanimously passed the Credit and Debit Card Receipt Clarification Act (H.R. 4008), which would help to clarify the requirements of what retailers print on credit and debit card receipts and remove the threat of frivolous litigation surrounding the issue of the expiration date on the receipts.

The bill is now before the Senate, and NACS is pushing for quick passage.

Introduced by Reps. Tim Mahoney (D-FL) and Michele Bachmann (R-MN), the legislation would bring an end to a slew of frivolous lawsuits aimed chiefly at small businesses.

“Millions of consumers across America will experience a little extra pain in the pocketbook unless Congress passes The Credit and Debit Card Receipt Clarification Act,” said Bachmann. “Stores and businesses across America are taking a hit. And if we don’t close this loophole, this pain will be passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices.”

In an effort to crack down on fraud, The Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act mandated that by Dec. 4, 2006, all business transaction receipts display only five customer credit card digits. Companies complied with the legislation but many continued printing the card expiration dates as well because of a lack of clarity in FACTA.

Even though identity theft experts say five digits from a credit card and expiration date are not enough to steal a card or an identity, lawyers across America began dragging business after business into court. H.R. 4008 closes Congress’ loophole by and puts a stop to these frivolous lawsuits.