CEI Today: Durbin bank fees, Spain’s bank bailout, and a Liberal War on Transparency

DURBIN PRICE CONTROLS – JOHN BERLAU

CEI.org: Durbin Bank Fees: An Unhappy One-Year Anniversary

One year ago this month, the Durbin Amendment debit card price controls from the Dodd-Frank financial “reform” law went into effect, greatly limiting what banks and credit unions could charge retailers to process debit card transactions. Over the past year, the costs of processing debit cards have shifted from retailers to consumers, Competitive Enterprise Institute analysts note, resulting in record-high checking account and ATM fees.

SPAIN’S BANK BAILOUT – MATTHEW MELCHIORRE

CEI.org: Report on Spanish Banks Underestimates Cost of Potential Bailout

A report last week said Spain’s banks could require as much as 53.74 billion euro in bailout funds, but an investigation by Matthew Melchiorre, the Warren Brookes Journalism Fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, found the cost to be more than twice that much. In a post at OpenMarket.org, Melchiorre discussed two fundamental problems with the findings of Oliver Wyman, the U.S.-based consulting firm that conducted the tests.

CHRISTOPHER C. HORNER

The Liberal War on Transparency: Confessions of a Freedom of Information “Criminal”

In his book, released today, October 2, Christopher Horner reveals a near-obsession of modern day liberals — political appointees, sympathetic career activists in government and academics and administrations at public universities — to avoid creating or allowing access to the record of what they’’re up to at taxpayer expense.