Congress mandates cash acceptance, empowering customers to sue retailers

What it does

This bill requires retail businesses that accept in-person payments to accept cash for transactions up to $500 and prohibits charging cash customers higher prices than card-paying customers. It creates a private right of action allowing customers to sue retailers for violations, with damages starting at $250 and civil penalties up to $1,500. The bill also requires banks to report ATM locations annually to Congress.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core function is to establish and enforce a consumer right to use cash at retail without discrimination or refusal, backed by private litigation. This is a consumer protection measure, not a financial deregulation or industry carve-out.

What the text implies

• The $500 per-transaction cap may not cover large purchases (appliances, furniture, vehicles), limiting practical cash utility for high-value transactions.
• Private right of action with low damages floor ($250 minimum) may generate high-volume litigation against small retailers, creating compliance burden and legal costs that could disproportionately affect small businesses.
• ATM reporting requirement creates new data collection on financial institution infrastructure, potentially revealing geographic gaps in cash access but also surveillance of banking operations.
• Five-year exemption for $50+ bills creates a transition period during which large-denomination cash remains optional, potentially delaying full cash acceptance and creating confusion.
• Exception for prepaid card conversion devices may incentivize retailers to push customers toward digital payment systems rather than accepting physical cash directly.

Who it affects

Ordinary citizens gain a legal right to use cash without penalty or refusal, protecting financial access for unbanked/underbanked populations and those who prefer cash. The enforcement mechanism empowers individual customers to sue, creating accountability. However, the $500 transaction cap and exceptions for system failures limit scope.

Who stands to gain

• unbanked and underbanked consumers
• cash-dependent retail customers
• civil litigation attorneys (private right of action)

Named in the bill

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), U.S. Department of the Treasury (Secretary), Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, House Committee on Financial Services, retail businesses, depository institutions, credit unions

Where it stands

1 cosponsor: 1 Democrats.

• Jul 17, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• Jul 17, 2025 — Referred to Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

19 lobbying clients named this bill on 21 disclosure filings across 3 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $405,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 2 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 96% of bills with at least one filing.

Kevin Cramer, the sponsor, reported $204,312 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• Ncr Atleos — $200,000 on 2 filings
• National Pawnbrokers Association — $70,000 on 1 filing
• National Automated Merchandising Association — $20,000 on 1 filing
• Ncr Atleos — $20,000 on 1 filing
• Ready Credit — $20,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.