Independent Grocers Conclude Successful Fly-In for Fair Competition, Deliver Bipartisan Call to Pass the Credit Card Competition Act

• May 20, 2026

Community grocers from across the country urge Congress to rein in swipe fees that drive up grocery prices for American families

Washington, D.C. - The National Grocers Association (NGA) today concluded a successful Fly-In for Fair Competition, bringing independent grocers from communities across the country to Capitol Hill to press lawmakers for swift action on the bipartisan Credit Card Competition Act (S.3623/H.R.7035).

Over the course of the fly-in, grocers held more than 100 meetings with members of Congress and their staff and formally delivered a letter, signed by nearly 1,700 independent grocers nationwide, urging Congressional leadership to pass this critical legislation.

The letter underscores the urgent strain that escalating credit card "swipe fees" place on a high-volume, low-margin industry where net profits average just 1-2 percent. For independent grocers, who serve as anchors of small towns, rural communities, and urban neighborhoods, swipe fees rank among the highest operating expenses, in many cases second only to labor.

"Independent grocers came to Washington with one clear message: every dollar taken by unchecked swipe fees is a dollar that can't be used to hold down prices for the families we serve," said NGA President & CEO Greg Ferrara. "Competition has always been a cornerstone of American economic policy, and the Credit Card Competition Act would finally bring that principle to a market dominated by two companies."

Together, the duopoly of Visa and Mastercard controls roughly 80 percent of the U.S. credit card market and unilaterally sets the network and interchange fees that merchants must pay. Their semiannual fee increases totaled $187.2 billion in 2024 alone, with Visa adding another $100 million in network-fee hikes earlier this year. Those costs fall disproportionately on small businesses with little bargaining power and are ultimately embedded in the price of groceries, costing the average American family nearly $1,800 per year.

The Credit Card Competition Act offers a targeted, pro-market remedy: it would require that credit cards issued by the largest banks support at least two competing networks, restoring competition and putting downward pressure on costs that drive up food prices. The letter also pushed back on industry claims that competition would jeopardize card rewards, noting that rewards are funded by issuing banks rather than by Visa or Mastercard, and that international practices, including a decade of reform in Australia, show rewards programs have remained robust after similar measures were implemented.

"Our members didn't come to Washington asking for special treatment. They came asking Congress to apply a basic American principle, competition, to a credit card market that has none," said Stephanie Johnson, NGA's senior vice president and head of government affairs. "Passing the Credit Card Competition Act is the single most direct step Congress can take this year to bring down what families pay at the checkout stand, and our members made that case clearly to lawmakers today."

"We had productive, bipartisan conversations on both sides of the Capitol, and the message we heard back is that members understand the urgency," Johnson continued. "The bill is ready, our members are unified, President Trump supports it, and the only thing standing between American families and meaningful swipe fee relief is a vote. We will keep pressing until leadership puts this legislation on the floor."

###

About the National Grocers Association

NGA is the national trade association representing the retail and wholesale community grocers that comprise the independent sector of the food distribution industry. An independent retailer is a privately owned or controlled food retail company operating a variety of formats. The independent grocery sector is accountable for about 1.2 percent of the nation's overall economy and is responsible for generating more than $250 billion in sales, 1.1 million jobs, $39 billion in wages and $36 billion in taxes. NGA members include retail and wholesale grocers located in every congressional district across the country, as well as state grocers' associations, manufacturers and service suppliers.