SM City Council Acts to Ban ATM Surcharges

Carolanne Sudderth

Mirror staff writer

   After an emotionally charged discussion, the Santa Monica City Council voted four to three to ban bank surcharges for the use of Automatic Teller Machines at its regular Tuesday meeting. 
   Council member Kevin McKeown brought the issue before the Council. “When I see an elderly woman with a walker pony up to an ATM machine, I want to know that her savings won’t be eroded because she can’t walk to the ATM her bank wants her to use,” he said. 
   Currently, a consumer is required to pay a surcharge to use an ATM other than his own bank's machines. In addition, a “foreign fee” is charged by the “non-customer’s” own bank and split with the ATM bank. Proponents of the ban argued that this discourages competition, as larger banks raise their fees to encourage the swing of savings in their direction. They also allege that surcharges have risen at a rate close to double that of inflation. 
   The proposed ordinance would have no effect on markets and other non-banking concerns that house ATMs because “very few people are likely to transfer their savings to the 7-11 store or the local market.”
   Council member Paul Rosenstein suggested that the markets be included in the ordinance and was soundly rebuffed by colleagues who accused him of trying to weaken the measure should it be challenged in court, something City Attorney Adam Radinsky said was likely. “Very few things are certain in the legal industry, but one thing that comes close is that an ordinance will be challenged.”