The Louisiana Retailers Association updates this page regularly with important new information about legislative and other issues to keep the savvy member and the public alert, informed, and in touch with industry issues, locally and nationally. Support Legislation to Combat Rising Interchange Fees Legislation has been introduced at the state and federal level to combat skyrocketing interchange fees. Inflated interchange fees harm retailers and consumers. Please contact your representatives in the Louisiana legislature and ask them to support:HB 673, HB 866, SB 516 and SB 518. Please contact the Louisiana Congressional delegation and ask them to support HR 5546, the Credit Card Fair Fees Act. Please see the sample letter below regarding interchange fees: Dear Senator: I am writing to enlist your support to put an end to outrageously high credit card fees. Nearly $2 of every $100 American consumers spend using credit cards goes to the credit card industry through the interchange fee. In 2006 alone, American consumers paid over $36 billion in credit card interchange fees, up 117% since 2001. This fee is set in secret by the credit card industry, forced on business, and foisted on consumers. Interchange fees cost American merchants and consumers billions in higher retail prices whether or not they pay using credit or debit cards. Visa member banks collectively agree to set the price of interchange rates. MasterCard member banks do, too. This price-fixing hurts merchants and consumers. I urge you to support (enter bill number here), which addresses the problem of skyrocketing interchange fees. Thank you for your attention to this issue. Sincerely, Mr. John Doe, Owner of ABC Retail Store Please contact the LRA office at 1-800-572-2378 or lra@laretail.org for your representative's contact information. Sales Tax Exemption There seems to be confusion among retailers as to the sales tax exemption on food for home consumption as some retailers continue to collect sales tax on food items that have been exempt since July 1, 2003, when the voters approved the Constitutional Amendment to exempt "food for home consumption" from the state sales tax. After the Constitutional Amendment was approved in November 2002, the Department of Revenue issued Revenue Ruling No. 03-002 that explained how the exemption should be applied. The ruling provided that the definition of "food for home consumption" included virtually all prepackaged, manufactured single-serving foods such as candy bars, chips, and bottled and canned soft drinks. These items, which were considered taxable, are now exempt from the state sales tax. Based on complaints received from consumers, this is where most of the confusion occurs with retailers. To ensure that the sales tax is properly collected, it is very important that convenience and chain stores properly program their cash registers and network systems to reflect the sales tax change. If you would like a copy of Revenue Ruling No. 03-002, please contact the Louisiana Retailers Association at lra@laretail.org or 1-800-572-2378.