Friday,
June 6, 2008; Page A18

There
is more to the May 25 front-page story about gas prices, "Peeved at
Prices? Don't Blame the Dealer": the credit card interchange fee.

Interchange
started as a fee to cover the cost of processing credit card charges by hand.
Today, paying at the pump is fully computerized, yet credit card interchange
fees have doubled since 2004, to nearly $8 billion a year just for motor fuels.

During
the same period, convenience store profits have been cut in half. Dwindling
profits is a big problem, and not solely for my members' wallets: Convenience
stores that sell gasoline (and provide jobs) are closing.

With
gasoline averaging $4 a gallon, 9 or 10 cents per gallon in interchange fees
goes directly to the credit card industry -- up to $3 per fill-up for many
drivers. And everyone pays interchange fees through higher gasoline prices
whether they use plastic or not. No one, except perhaps the member nations of
the Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries, enjoys higher profits from $4 gas than Visa and
MasterCard.

HANK
ARMOUR

Chairman
and Chief Executive

National
Association of Convenience Stores

You
know when I am getting screwed I usually like to get kissed. I knew about the
highway robbery at ATM machines.

But
this is a hidden tax,

I
thought only the thieves in Congress were supposed to be able to do this. In
fact I think I will send this to a few my elected Officials and see if I get a
response. Maybe we all should.

DA
(pissed off) grump