Show Me the Money: A New Wave of Pricing Transparency Laws

AGG Payment Systems & Fintech co-chair Theresa Kananen authored an article published by Total Retail on February 10 highlighting a series of regulatory updates aimed at promoting pricing transparency and consumer protection.

“Every for-profit business faces the challenge of setting competitive prices while also generating a profit,” Theresa said. “An increasingly common solution to this conundrum has been to advertise one price and later disclose additional charges — e.g., hotels’ resort fees, e-ticketing platforms’ ‘handling’ fees or even surcharges assessed against customers paying with a credit card. The consumer backlash against price creep has been sharp, and the last year has seen regulators spring into action in response.”

These responses have taken place at both the federal and state level. The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) published a proposed rule in October 2023 to prohibit “junk fees.” New York followed suit in February 2024 by making it illegal to add a surcharge for the use of a credit card at the point of sale. California rolled out its Honest Pricing Law in July 2024, while Minnesota established a similar law on January 1, 2025, with both stating it is an unfair practice to disclose a price that “does not include all mandatory fees or surcharges.”

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