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Committee members of the General Assembly approved legislation that will prohibit businesses such as Amazon Go from refusing cash for payment. The bill was passed, following in the footsteps of several other states nationwide who are encouraging consumers to use cash.
The bill, which was introduced by Rep. Holly Cheeseman, overwhelmingly passed last month by a 15 to 1 vote. Fairfield County Rep. David Rutigliano was the lone dissenter, arguing that such measures should be under the control of business owners in Connecticut, not politicians.
According to a study from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Americans use cash in just 30 percent of transactions, mostly for cheaper items. Cash is also the most common form of payment for lower-income consumers. An FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households found that approximately a quarter of all Americans do not have a checking or savings account, citing a distrust in banks or lack of income to maintain the accounts.
“An increasing number of businesses are refusing cash as payment and demanding payment by credit card, debit card, or digital wallet,” Cheeseman said to the General Assembly earlier this year. “This practice is highly discriminatory and harmful.”
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