Travel Industry Unites Against Bill Threatening Credit Card Rewards

WASHINGTON, D.C. – April 22, 2026 – A formidable coalition of more than 30 travel and tourism organizations has launched a unified front against a bipartisan bill in Congress, warning that the legislation could dismantle the credit card rewards programs used by millions of Americans to afford travel. The newly formed U.S. Tourism Economy Alliance (USTEA) announced its formation today, vowing to protect a system they argue is a critical economic engine for the nation.

At the heart of the conflict is the Durbin-Marshall Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA), a bill aimed at regulating the fees banks charge merchants for processing credit card transactions. While proponents claim the act will lower costs for businesses and consumers, the travel industry contends it will force credit card issuers to gut the popular points, miles, and cashback programs that have become integral to modern travel.

Your Next Vacation at Risk?

For millions of households, the calculus of planning a vacation relies heavily on credit card rewards. According to industry data, these programs facilitate over 15 million domestic flights annually and are held by more than 30 million households with airline-specific cards. The USTEA argues that this system injects nearly $44 billion in spending into the travel economy from rewards travelers alone, supporting a sector that employs over 16 million people nationwide.

The alliance asserts that the CCCA would jeopardize this ecosystem. "Credit card travel rewards are how millions of Americans are able to take trips and visit family, and they support jobs across the travel and tourism sector," said Airlines for America (A4A), a prominent member of the new coalition. The organization fears the bill would create new costs and complexities for credit card issuers, making the rewards programs financially unsustainable. "The CCCA would...put at risk the benefits travelers have earned and rely on," A4A stated, warning that disrupting the marketplace could eliminate the rewards that make travel possible for many.

The concern is that without points and miles to offset costs, many families would be forced to scale back or cancel their travel plans, creating a ripple effect that would harm airlines, hotels, restaurants, and local attractions across the country.

The Legislative Battle Over 'Swipe Fees'

The Credit Card Competition Act, reintroduced in January 2026 by a bipartisan group of lawmakers including Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Roger Marshall (R-KS), is not a new fight. The legislation, which has also been endorsed by former President Donald Trump, aims to break the market dominance of Visa and Mastercard.

Its core provision would mandate that large financial institutions (those with over $100 billion in assets) offer merchants a choice of at least two unaffiliated payment networks for processing credit card transactions, with at least one being a network other than Visa or Mastercard.

Proponents, primarily large retail and merchant associations like the National Retail Federation, argue this would introduce much-needed competition and drive down "swipe fees"—the interchange fees merchants pay on every transaction. They contend these fees, which average around 2% of a purchase, are a hidden tax that businesses are forced to pass on to all consumers through higher prices, regardless of how they pay. By lowering these fees, they argue, merchants could lower prices for everyone.

A Déjà Vu for Debit Cards?

Opponents of the CCCA, including the new travel alliance and the financial industry, counter that the bill’s promises are based on a flawed premise. They point to the 2010 Durbin Amendment, which placed similar regulations on debit card interchange fees, as a cautionary tale.

Following that legislation, debit card rewards programs largely vanished. To recoup lost revenue, many banks eliminated free checking accounts and increased other consumer fees. Critically, multiple studies found that the vast majority of merchants did not pass their savings from lower debit card fees on to consumers in the form of lower prices. Instead, the savings were largely retained by big-box retailers.

The USTEA and its allies warn that the CCCA would trigger a similar, but much larger, chain reaction for credit cards. "Countless local communities are built on travel and tourism," said Richard Hunt, Executive Chairman of the Electronic Payments Coalition. "From family-owned businesses on Main Street to our national economy, credit card rewards programs play a critical role in helping Americans travel and support jobs in communities across the country."

Citing a study by Oxford Economics, Hunt warned that eliminating these rewards could deliver a massive blow to the U.S. economy, potentially costing it nearly a quarter-trillion dollars in economic activity and jeopardizing approximately 160,000 jobs. The study assumes that a significant reduction in interchange fees—the primary funding source for rewards—would force issuers to slash these benefits. "Washington should be focused on strengthening local economies, not stifling them with harmful mandates," Hunt added.

The debate also extends to security. Opponents argue that forcing transactions onto smaller, alternative networks could expose consumers to higher risks of fraud, as these networks may not have the same level of investment in security and fraud prevention as the major players.

With the formation of the U.S. Tourism Economy Alliance, the battle lines are now clearly drawn. The travel and tourism sector has signaled it will not stand by as lawmakers consider legislation it views as an existential threat to its business model and the travel habits of millions of Americans. As the bill makes its way through Congress, the clash between retailers seeking lower fees and a travel industry dependent on rewards-driven spending is set to intensify, with the future of consumer loyalty programs hanging in the balance.