Prof. Prentiss Cox ’90 Quoted in Star Tribune About the New Minnesota Price Transparency Law

Professor Prentiss Cox ’90 was quoted in the Minnesota Star Tribune about a potential class-action lawsuit involving customers of businesses that charge credit card fees. The customers argue the fees for credit cards are effectively unavoidable and should be regulated under a consumer protection law that took effect Jan. 1. Under the guidance of Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s Office, a credit card surcharge is not considered mandatory if a person can “reasonably avoid” paying the fee by using cash. Another chapter of Minnesota law that specifically deals with credit card surcharges requires businesses to inform in-person customers through a conspicuously posted sign and an oral instruction at the point of sale. Since the law took effect, more than 60 businesses received letters from the Attorney General’s Office in response to price transparency complaints. Prof. Cox said the state’s price transparency law is simple. Many businesses have adapted by offering customers the choice of paying a list price with a credit card processing fee attached or a cash discount. At the end of the day, he said, the law’s purpose is making the price consumers see the same as the price they ultimately pay. He said, “If it’s a charge that a reasonable person would expect to be included in the price, it’s not that hard to comply. Just include it in the price.”