WASHINGTON — Interchange is not only starting to generate heat at the federal level. Sub-issues around the topic have been bubbling up at the state level as well.

This past spring in Texas, the state legislature faced a bill that would have allowed retailers to charge a fee to consumers who use a credit or debit card to pay for a product or service. The legislative change was eventually voted down.

Led in part by American Consumers for Education and Competition, a consumer rights and financial literacy advocacy organization that is funded by Visa, the opponents argued that the proposed law called for merchants to notify consumers prior to adding a surcharge fee to a purchase made using a credit card, but made no provisions for enforcement of that requirement.