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Current Week  

    April 13, 2007


Grass Roots Help Needed to Kill Banks Bill
Other News and Notes from the Capitol
Legislative Reception
Member Services Update
Retail News and Notes


• CRMA continues to very strongly object SB 1089, “An Act Encouraging the Safekeeping of Consumer Information”.

• This bill, as we have mentioned, has been introduced and supported by the Connecticut Bankers Association and would force retailers to pay banks for the cost of canceling and reissuing cards in the case of a security breach.

• We need your help in killing this bill.

• We need you to call your State Representative or State Senator today and tell them to kill this bill.

• It is unfair and unnecessary. Banks have a system in place where they can get reimbursed by Visa/MasterCard but they want more.

• You can begin by calling or emailing the Co-chairs of the Banks Committee, Sen. Bob Duff (D- Norwalk) and Rep. Ryan Barry (D- Manchester).

• Tell them you are a member of CRMA and that you oppose the bill and urge them to kill it.

• You can also tell them how you are already paying the banks thru unregulated interchange rates that are growing every year!

• We cannot allow this bill to go unchallenged and we are working extremely hard to defeat it. If each member sends an email to Sen. Duff and to Rep. Barry along with their own State Senator and State Rep., it will have a great impact.

• Senator Bob Duff’s email address is duff@senatedems.ct.gov, and Representative Ryan Barry’s email address is ryan.barry@cga.ct.gov.

• If you are unsure who your State Senator or State Rep. is, call or email us today and we will help you.


Other News and Notes from the Capitol

• It has been quiet up at the Capitol for the last 2 weeks, but things are going to pick up again very soon.

• We have a whole host of issues we continue to cover and we encourage all of our members to call into our legislative calls to get caught up on the action.

• The Appropriations and Finance Committees are finishing their work soon and we will have a more detailed look at what they have done in next week’s FF.

• We know the Democrats have proposed some things in their budget that the Governor has already said are unacceptable, but the hard work on negotiating the budget will begin soon.

• Our next Legislative Committee conference call is scheduled for Wednesday April 25, 2007 at 10:00 am. Please call Cathy in our office at 860-527-1044 for more information.

Legislative Reception

• Invitations to our Annual Legislative Reception are in the mail.

• This year’s event will be held on Thursday, May 17, 2007 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the OLD APPRORIATIONS ROOM OF THE STATE CAPITOL.

• The event is open to all members and we strongly encourage you to attend.

• We again would like to thank the CT Chapter of the ICSC for their sponsorship of the reception.

Member Services Update

• If you are interested in receiving a free quote on your bankcard program, please call our office today.

• CRMA and Global Payments offer members great rates (despite Visa and MasterCard continuing to raise their rates) and outstanding service. Please call Linda Chapin at 1-877-767-7841 or Cathy in our office at 860-527-1044 for more information.

• Also, health care costs keep rising and we know the legislature is trying to find ways to fix that, but in the meantime we have some ways to help small retailers.

• Our professional health insurance agents have the expertise and experience to find the right plan to fit your needs.

• Call us today for more information or email us crma@crmaonline.com.

Retail news and Notes

• Macy's inks deal with TheKnot.com registry. Macy's wedding and gift registry will be the exclusive retail partner marketing its wares on TheKnot.com, which provides online wedding shopping and planning tools. Macy's.com CEO and Chairman Peter Sachse has resigned from The Knot's board, and terms of the agreement were not disclosed. American City Business Journals/St. Louis (4/12)

• Big Y drops Imus products. All 56 Big Y Foods stores are pulling Imus Ranch Foods' salad dressing from their shelves in the wake of the controversy surrounding radio personality's Don Imus' offensive comments on the air. MassLive.com/The Republican (Springfield, Mass.) (4/12)

• March sees retail sales boost. U.S. retailers reported stronger sales than expected in March thanks to Easter falling early and warmer weather, which boosted sales of spring apparel. Still, Federated Department Stores said its first-quarter sales would be at the low end of earlier predictions, and Wal-Mart noted that its April sales might decline. Bloomberg (4/12)