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Like many teenagers, 15-year-old Charlie Johnson, of Grosse Pointe, likes to have the coolest athletic shoes he can find.
However, he learned an expensive lesson while shopping online and his complaint helped lead the Better Business Bureau to issue a consumer warning.
"I was just shopping around trying to get a good deal," remember Johnson, who will be a sophomore at University of Detroit Jesuit High School.
When he spoke with Ruth to the Rescue, he was wearing some genuine Charles Barkley athletic shoes, but he went online looking for some Jordan 11 Cool Grey's.
"You find a site that's selling ... Jordans. The pictures look good, and they're cheap. Cheaper than other places," he remembered.
Hot Shoes, Big Business
Johnson says the shoes he wanted have a re-sale value of more than $300 on many sites, like eBay. He says there's a market out there as teenagers search for the specific shoes they want to buy. He says when he found a pair on GenuineKicks for about $120, he made the purchase.
By the time the shoes arrived, he's some more research. When he opened them, he noticed some things weren't quite right.
"I got 'em and I was looking around, and I saw certain things that make them fake, and I was like 'Wow! These are actually fake!'"
When his emails to the website went unanswered, this teenager contacted the Better Business Bureau here in Eastern Michigan.
"I just went online and filed a complaint or investigation," Charlie Johnson told Ruth to the Rescue.
Better Business Bureau Investigates
It turns out the Better Business Bureau had seen several complaints from customers who also said they received counterfeit shoes, or no shoes at all. Agents from the bureau even posed as a customer trying to get more information from the company, but there email exchanges did not prove very
Johnson understands the frustration all the disappointed customers must be feeling.
"I'd do better homework. I'd try to find a better deal, but if it seems too good to be true, it probably is," said the teenager who learned a valuable consumer lesson.
After its investigation, the Better Business Bureau released a warning telling customers not to buy shoes from Genuine Kicks or Genuinekickz using the website http://ajdeals.bravesites.com
Here's a portion of the the agency's warning: "The BBB urges consumers to be wary of the promise of expensive athletic shoes at a low cost due to the complaints received at the BBB as well as their questionable business practices." You can find more details, and the agency's "F" rating for the website
through this link.
The Better Business Bureau says it sent a certified letter to a P.O. Box in Auburn Hills connected to the website. It says someone signed for the letter, but never answered the consumer complaints. Ruth to the Rescue could not find a phone number for the site, which is usually a red flag. Businesses should have a working customer service line.
The Better Business Bureau also passes along several guidelines to consider when shopping online:
Tips for Purchasing Online
• Know the Website. Before ordering any merchandise online, check the URL link to make sure it starts with "https://" (the "s" means it is secure). Also look for a small padlock icon usually located at the corner of the URL bar. These symbols tell shoppers that a website is secure. Make sure to confirm the address and phone number of the online business in case there are any issues contacting them.
• Read and Compare. When buying a product, read the whole description including the fine print. It is important to understand the details of the product being purchased so there are no surprises when it's delivered. Check competitor prices to guarantee the lowest price. There are many online resources that allow the comparison of products and offer coupon codes to get a better deal.
• Beware of deals that sound too good to be true. Offers on websites and in unsolicited e-mails can often sound too good to be true, especially extremely low prices on hard-to-get items. Consumers should always go with their instincts and not be afraid to pass up a "deal" that might cost them dearly in the end. Google the company name and read reviews, and customer comments. Always check the company's BBB Online Business Review at www.bbb.org prior to purchase.
• Check the Return Policy. Read the return policy to see if the business allows a full refund if the customer is not happy with the product. Review the policy to see who pays for the cost of shipping and handling for the return.
• Choose the Correct Payment Method. Always pay with a credit card when shopping online. A purchase with a credit card is protected under the Fair Credit Billing Act. This allows customers to briefly hold payment while a problem is reviewed and resolved. This act also protects customers in the event that credit card information is stolen and used without permission. Make sure to print the receipts and product information of any online purchases to prevent incorrect charges. Do not wire transfer money to anyone you do not know. Money sent via wire transfer is practically impossible to track.
• Keep Personal Information Safe. Never email any personal information such as credit card and banking numbers, or social security numbers. Be careful to only give financial information through secure websites. Check the privacy policy to see how the business is using the information they have requested. If there is no privacy policy listed on a site, it's a red flag that the site might not be legitimate.
• In the Event of Online Fraud. If there is a problem with a purchase or business, complaints can be filed with the Better Business Bureau to help resolve the issue. The Federal Trade Commission also handles complaints at www.ftc.gov/complaint.
Copyright 2013 by ClickOnDetroit.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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Students who graduate from the Sellinger School will receive a Bachelor of Business Administration with a degree in Accounting or Business Administration. There are seven majors offered within the Business Administration degree, including business economics, finance, general business, information systems, international business, management, and marketing. Explore the links below to learn more about each major.
The Sellinger School offers minors in business administration and general business. The general business minor includes concentrations in the following: business economics, entrepreneurship, information systems, international business, and marketing.
Visit the undergraduate section to learn more about all minors and electives offered at Loyola University Maryland.

subset: commoncrawl


text: Emails show Linger, Phares correspondence months before Marple firing By Mackenzie Mays February 7, 2013 Story Share CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Months before the state Board of Education voted to hire Jim Phares to replace former state Superintendent of Schools Jorea Marple, board President Wade Linger asked him for a copy of his résumé, according to emails obtained by the Gazette."I just simply wanted to see it because I was concerned about the direction of the department even back then, and I was aware that Dr. Phares had a lot of strong professional accomplishments. I just wanted to see it in writing," Linger said in a phone interview Thursday.On Sept. 16, while Marple was still schools chief, Linger sent an email to Phares that asked, "Will you please email your bio to me? I don't need a full resume. Just the headlines."Two months later, on Nov. 15, the Board of Education shocked many education leaders across the state by voting to terminate Marple. That same day, Linger recommended Phares for the position.Leaders of the state's teachers unions, in addition to Priscilla Haden and Jenny Phillips -- former state board members who resigned because of Marple's firing -- voiced their concern with the board's firing process and Phares' speedy appointment.Marple claimed the decision was merely political.Though both Linger and Phares admitted to working with each other in Marion County, they denied that the move was predetermined or politically charged.The day before Marple was fired, on Nov. 14, Linger forwarded Phares' bio to board liaison Donna Peduto, according to email records.The same day, Linger asked Phares via email if he could be in Charleston the next day, which was the day that Marple was fired."Can you come to Charleston tomorrow if I can get us on the Gov schedule? Can we talk by phone this evening?" Linger asked Phares in the email.When asked if he met with Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin to discuss Phares' appointment prior to Marple's termination, Linger said, "There was no such meeting." Amy Shuler Goodwin, communications director for Tomblin, confirmed the governor did meet with Linger and Phares on Nov. 15, but after Marple had already been fired. Tomblin "didn't know [the board planned to fire Marple] until shortly before," Goodwin said.Linger and Phares also exchanged emails a week before Marple's termination, collaborating on the governor's statewide education audit recommendations, particularly concerning the Department of Education's data system.Phares had publicly voiced his displeasure with the West Virginia Education Information System (WVEIS), and in the email, Linger, who has a background in technology, makes it clear he's on the same page.A Freedom of Information Act request was first filed by the Gazette in November after Marple's firing, but the Department of Education's legal counsel did not respond to the request until Thursday, saying the response was delayed because of multiple requests. Since Marple was fired, accusations swirled as to why she was suddenly terminated in a 5-2 vote when just five months prior, the board gave her a glowing evaluation.Some pointed to ties to her husband, former state Attorney General Darrell McGraw, who lost his re-election bid shortly before she was fired. Others, like Dale Lee of the West Virginia Education Association, blamed "a Manchin faction" for the decision. Sen. Joe Manchin's wife, Gayle, is currently vice president of the state board. Another red flag for skeptics was when Phares did not hesitate to announce his plans to resign as Randolph County Schools' superintendent just 24 hours after Marple was fired.On Nov. 16, the day following Marple's termination, Linger warned Phares to take a step back."I want you to know that I am being told that it is a bad idea for you to take any kind of resignation action whatsoever until after the WVBOE takes official action offering you the position. The concern is that your doing so will create the appearance that I am overstepping my authority by offering a position on my own. Even if you and I know that is not true, it most certainly can and will be [spun] that way," Linger wrote in an email to Phares."I don't need that extra hurdle to jump, and it will definitely harm my chances of convincing the Board to support me on this," Linger wrote. "I think your approach in not taking the appointment for granted is good. But you really need to back that up with the way you deal with your Board." In December, the board voted unanimously to swear in Phares as the new superintendent, pending a nationwide search to find a more permanent position. "While the idea was initially mine to appoint him, no action could be taken to hire him without a majority vote. I don't know how anybody could say that we were somehow buddies or something like that. I've only known him in a professional way," Linger said Thursday. "I knew of his record in Marion County before I was even on the board, and his work in Randolph County was well documented. There's nothing more to it. It's really as simple as that."Linger said he could not comment on when he and/or other board members determined it was time for a new superintendent or when he first considered Phares for the position, because of a pending lawsuit.Attorneys on behalf of Marple notified the board last month that she intends to sue, claiming she was illegally dismissed and has subsequently suffered permanent injury to her reputation.An earlier lawsuit on behalf of parents of a public school student claims the board's process of firing Marple breaks open meeting laws.Linger first declined to comment Thursday over the phone about the emails, and instead insisted on an email interview. He then responded to email questions by saying he could not comment because of the pending legal matters.But he called later in the afternoon, saying he wanted to comment despite being advised not to.Linger said Thursday it was clear to him that others also felt the board needed a new direction and that Phares was the right person to lead the board during a critical time for education in the state."I didn't necessarily know it ... but I assumed that everybody was feeling the same thing. I knew that it would probably take some time to get a serious national search executed, and we were about to release the audit response and getting into a pretty important legislative cycle where education reform was going to take center stage," he said. "So, having a strong leader in there during this phase was important."Phillips, who had served on the board since 2005, said she knew nothing about the plans to fire Marple, but said she and Haden were kept out of the loop because the board knew they would not support the decision."I don't know Wade's relationship with Jim Phares, but I have to assume it was close," she said. "I couldn't believe it when they fired Jorea. All of the sudden, bam. I still get phone calls asking what happened. I was just amazed."But, the Randolph County native said hindsight is 20/20."Jim had showed up at my house [in Elkins] a week or so before Jorea was fired. He had told me that he had seen Wade and that he wanted to let me know that he understood the board was very disjointed," she said. "It was strange. He had never shown up before."Reach Mackenzie Mays at firstname.lastname@example.com or 304-348-4814. Story Share Story Share Trending Now 1 Man charged after motorcycle pursuit early Sunday 2 Deer in 8 WV counties found dead from EHD 3 Former State Police captain now chief in Winfield 4 Innerviews: Dual-identity surgeon riding high in horse racing world 5 'Heroin(e)' spotlights women helping combat Huntington's drug crisis Kanawha County law firm to go after pill mills Previous Story Education tops Tomblin's legislative agenda Next Story


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10 American Beauties
All golf clubs claim prestige, but these are the 10 american beauties. The clubhouses ooze tradition and the courses challenge anyone lucky enough to play them
(continued from page 3)
The vast majority of private clubs convey status at the local level, stamping a new member with the instant gratification of being a big fish in a small water hazard. The bigger the hazard, say major metropolitan area versus small rural city, the greater the prestige of membership. More people know that you belong--and they don't.
But there exists in America a number of private clubs that are so stratospheric in prestige and prominence that their cachet exceeds any geographical or political boundaries, their desirability exceeds any limitations. Their membership is a distillation of personality, personal achievement and playing ability drawn from around the country. Their courses are among the best and, in some cases, the most famous. Their clubhouse facilities are impeccable. They are the American Beauties.
This package of prestige ultimately conveys to members an extraordinary status in the golf world--that of envied elite. To be sure, these golfing anointed didn't become members by calling the manager and asking for an application. They were invited, summoned to the altar, knighted even.
So which are the best, most desirable, most drop-dead American Beauties? Which clubs have that magical mix, that aching allure?
These are my choices, my Top 10, made for Cigar Aficionado. The choices reflect more than 20 years of intimate involvement in the game as a professional golf writer, one privileged enough to play the best courses, dine in the best clubhouses, socialize with the members who have reached the top of the pyramid.
In appraising these clubs, it is not enough to simply evaluatethe golf course. Naturally, the courses must be top-notch, and more often than not they've been laid out by some of history's best designers. Some host major golf tournaments. But the whole package must be considered. What is the overall ambience of the club? How does it feel to walk through the front door, to walk into the locker room, to take a seat at the bar, to talk to a member? And who are those members? The atmosphere must be thick with history and understated elegance. There must be a sense of devotion to the game, a devotion to maintaining its standards of fair play and etiquette. So now on to the choices, in order, of the Top 10 golf clubs in America. Bagpipes, if you please.
Seminole Golf Club may be the purest expression of the game in America. Its course, by legendary Scottish designer Donald Ross, is delightfully old-fashioned, with a wonderful set of greens and a perfect setting against the Atlantic Ocean. Its clubhouse is traditional Florida-Spanish. The air seems left over from a different era. Its men's locker room is without question the finest in the game, its walls lined with dark, old wooden lockers and pictures and placards that depict the history of the game in America. The names that surround you are Bobby Jones, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson and Ben Hogan. Seminole became Hogan's winter digs and he proclaimed the sixth hole as the most perfect par 4 in the United States. His locker was No. 50.
The members at Seminole have one thing in common--a palpable love of the game. Former United States Golf Association presidents Jim Hand, Stuart Bloch, Bill Campbell and Buzz Taylor are members. So, too, are prominent amateurs like Buddy Marucci, Vinny Giles, Dick Siderowf and Spider Miller. Some of America's most active corporate players--IBM chief Louis Gerstner and General Electric CEO Jack Welch--are also members. But as one insider puts it, "If you are the chairman of IBM, you will get into Augusta National. You might get into Seminole."
Seminole is for golfers who deeply understand the shot values and character values of the game. It may have the best playing membership in the United States. Taken as a whole, it is the perfect club. Jimmy Dunne, a Seminole member, is a New York investment banker and an avid golfer (and avid cigar smoker) who has played all the best courses all over the world. His assessment: "It's the greatest golf club in the world. Period."
For one week in April every year, Augusta National Golf Club is the most visible club in the world. For the other 51 weeks it is a Pinkerton-guarded sanctuary shut off from the outside world and held exclusively for its very exclusive membership.
As the host of the Masters golf tournament, one of the world's four majors, Augusta National is ingrained in the national consciousness. For the 40,000 or so spectators (Masters officials call them patrons) who get to walk the course during the week, and for the millions at home watching on television, Augusta is nothing less than a cathedral to the game. Indeed, when you walk down the 10th hole with the large pine trees flanking the fairway, it can seem nothing less than Notre Dame cathedral itself.
Avid followers of tournament golf in America can tell you the length and par of each of the holes on the back nine, can recount the triumphs and disasters that have befallen the greats who have played in the Masters. Most people can tell you that the club was founded by Bobby Jones and designed by Jones and Alister MacKenzie. Many can tell you that Jack Nicklaus won six Masters, that Arnold Palmer won four and that Gene Sarazen's double eagle 2 on the par-5 15th hole in 1935 was the shot that established the Masters as a major tournament.
That's the public Augusta National. The private Augusta National is one of the most relaxing places on earth, with an exquisitely manicured course and a par-3 short course that may have no rival for sheer beauty anywhere. It is a club whose membership is rife with some of America's top corporate leaders (IBM's Gerstner is a member here, too), but the atmosphere is neither snooty nor stifling. Members and their guests may stay in the private cottages on the grounds. To be sure, decorum is maintained and no one walks around in cutoffs and a T-shirt. But there is a very casual, friendly air. If you meet a member, you had better remember his name, because he will remember yours.
The name to remember for membership in Augusta National is Hootie Johnson, a South Carolina banker who is the Masters tournament chairman. He is ruler of the club and arbiter of all things that happen there, including an invitation for membership. If you get a letter from Hootie Johnson on Augusta National stationery, you have been blessed.
For decades Pine Valley was generally considered the most difficult golf course in the United States, maybe the world. In the early 1900s Philadelphia businessman and sportsman George Crump went looking for land near Philadelphia that could accommodate an absolutely first-class golf course. In southern New Jersey, he found that land, a rolling plot of scrub forest sitting atop deep layers of sand.
From this land, Crump, with the advice of such architects as A. W. Tillinghast, H. S. Colt and William Flynn, fashioned a marvelous and treacherous test of golf that became a challenge to all the best players. Its vast waste areas of deep sand bunkers and undulating greens still stand the test of time, even if modern golf equipment and maintenance procedures have softened the course a bit.
Pine Valley's fame and formidability have drawn a truly national membership over the years, and it may number as many as 1,000 now, with a huge waiting list. You have to be able to play the game to have any hope of membership. Hackers need not apply. The president is Gordon Brewer, a USGA Senior Amateur champion. Former amateur great and current Senior PGA Tour player Jay Sigel is a member.
Like Augusta National, Pine Valley is self-contained, with cottages on the grounds and all meals served on the premises. Like Augusta, it also has a beautiful short course. Unlike Augusta, it doesn't host a major professional golf tournament, but an invitation to the Crump Cup, a mid-amateur event, is highly prized. Pine Valley can feel a little too corporate at times, but the course feels mighty special.
The funny thing about the Shinnecock Hills Golf Club is that by the 1960s it was nearly forgotten, a relic from the beginnings of the game in America. Now, it is again one of the most desirable of all clubs.
Its rediscovery came in 1986 when it hosted its second United States Open Golf Championship, 90 years after it hosted its first. What was rediscovered was a magnificent links-style course overlooked from a magnificent Stanford White clubhouse. Shinnecock has two of the greatest vistas in the game--one looking from the porch over the course, the other from the course facing the clubhouse.
Shinnecock Hills was one of the five founding members of the U.S. Golf Association, in 1894. Despite that instant prestige it was known for decades only to the cognoscenti of the game because of its relatively remote location on the eastern end of Long Island and its decidedly low profile.
This is a real family golf club, a club in which women hold equal membership rights. For the most part its membership is drawn from wealthy New Yorkers who summer in the Hamptons and from locally prominent businesspeople. The club was looking for members in the 1970s but now has a substantial waiting list.
Sandy Tatum, a Cypress member and former president of the U.S. Golf Association, calls Cypress Point the Sistine Chapel of golf. He has good reason.
This rocky headland just north of the Pebble Beach Resort is one of the most beautiful sites in the world for a golf course, and Augusta National designer MacKenzie did a superb job of finding the holes rather than creating them. The massive par-3 16th, played across a chasm with the roiling Pacific below, is one of the most famous holes in golf. Little known is that the preceding 15th is another par 3 across a chasm and an exceptional hole in its own right.
For many years Cypress Point was, like Augusta, publicly known for one week a year when it was one of the three courses that hosted the Pebble Beach AT&T (née Crosby) National Pro-Am. But when the PGA Tour demanded that Cypress Point diversify its membership in 1990, the club refused to honor the PGA's timetable and withdrew as a host site. Now, its public viewing is limited to tourists, who can still cruise through the property on 17-Mile Drive. There are golfers who even jump out of their cars and hit balls off the 16th tee just to say that they did it.
Even if the holes weren't so good, the views would be outstanding. Black-tailed deer walk the fairways, casually chomping on the rough. A seal may bark during your backswing as you play the ocean holes. Seabirds may trill as you sacrifice another ball to the Pacific. The old California colonial clubhouse is appropriately worn, aged like a prime steak. Like Tatum, you occasionally may feel like genuflecting when you play Cypress Point.
About 25 miles west of Chicago's bustling Loop is the Chicago Golf Club, a windswept prairie of old-fashioned golf with an old-fashioned clubhouse and a generally older membership. Chicago has the feel of the old inland courses of the British Isles, always has, and probably always will. That's exactly what the members want.
Chicago is another one of the founding members of the U.S. Golf Association, and contends that on its original site in 1890 it constructed the first 18-hole course in America, edging out Shinnecock Hills. Charles Blair Macdonald and his right-hand man, Seth Raynor, laid out old and new (1922) Chicago Golf Club courses. While the property is mostly flat, odd mounds, deep sand bunkers and tall fescue rough combine to give the course a links feel even though it is about as far from the sea as you can get.
Macdonald learned about golf when he attended St. Andrews University in Scotland, and many holes are tributes to holes found on Scottish courses. The 207-yard par-3 seventh hole, known as Redan, is Macdonald's version of the Redan Hole at North Berwick, outside of Edinburgh. The sixth hole has a pair of bunkers shaped like nostrils, Macdonald's ode to the Principal's Nose bunker at St. Andrews.
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Hello everyone,
I am interested in expanding my meditation practice by combining what is compatible between Goenka's (body scanning) teaching and Mahasi's (noting), or any other combination with Goenka found to be helpful (I have only meditated in Goenka's tradition (10-day format courses, no longer courses yet), and have read a little bit about Mahasi's).
I would be really grateful for some comparative information and comments regarding Mahasi's (or other) way of meditation on the following aspects of meditation (these views are my own interpretation from instructions and interviews with the assistant teachers):
Typical length of daily sittings (at home, outside of courses):
2x 1 hour per day
General breakdown of a sitting:
1) A few minutes of anapana meditation (only if necessary to calm the mind, else straight onto vipassana).
2) The rest of the time spent in Vipassana meditation (with anapana to assist during vipassana whenever it is not possible to maintain the balance of the mind and continue with vipassana).
3) Five to ten minutes of loving-kindness generation (metta bavana) meditation at the end of the (hour) sitting.
Technique of anapana (applicable?) :
Focusing on an area below the nostrils above the upper lip, being aware of the naturally incoming and outgoing breath (and sensations in this area as a secondary object).
Technique of vipassana
Moving one's attention through the body at about an inch diameter a time (initially over the surface then later inside) observing whatever sensations are present, moving on as soon as a sensation is felt (staying for a few minutes if the area is blank) – I usually go part by part from top to bottom and bottom to top, sometimes at great speed, depending on the subtlety of sensations. Moving goes quicker and without 'hindrance' as the mind becomes subtler and one can feel subtle level free-flowing sensations – this enables one to sweep the entire body in short time. The mind's perception of sensations changes from them as gross unpleasant to subtle, pleasant sensations and awareness of sensations inside the body increases. Techniques for moving change in accordance with sensations felt.
When difficulties arise:
Anapana: If there is no distinct awareness of incoming/outgoing breath, take slightly hard breaths for a while. For new students increase the area of awareness.
Treat unpleasant sensations as any other, moving on once you pass them on a part of the body. If an unpleasant sensation overpowers the mind, stay there for a minute observing it and move on (continue up/down the body). Use anapana as necessary. Keep with the sensations of the body, giving no importance to states of mind (fear/anger etc.) other than accepting that an emotion is the reality of the present moment. When really overpowering feelings/states of mind come up, keep the attention focused for longer on the soles/palm areas to remain with sensation.
Many thanks, and may all beings be happy


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Hey everyone, this is my first post EVER on this forum and I shoot RHBH. I read it a lot and think it's awesome. Over the summer I acquire tons of discs. I have friends who litterally care like 50 discs but use only 4. I really think it's better to have less discs but I am having troubles deciding what to cut.
My Full Bag
Overstable Distance Drivers:
Glow Champ Wraith (flys like a boss)
(158) Blizzard Wraith (very straight and predictable with no wind)
Z Avenger (I've had some awesome straight shots with this disc but it's starting to turn over)
(~172) Star Destroyer (can turn over in the wind but pretty os)
Stable Distance Drivers:
Star Valkyrie (mainly used for s curve, or minor fade left)
Pro Katana (had some amazing drives with tons of distance but is very flippy and turns over a lot, dont trust in wind, seems to hyzer flip ok)
Understable Distance Drivers:
Z Avenger SS (hyzer flip, fades left)
Glo Avenger SS (always goes right)
Glo Road Runner (s curve disc, can be used to turnover)
Gold Bolt (good s curve disc, goes right then HARD left)
Z Nuke SS (last disc I bought, like the road runner but more likely to turn left)
Overstable Fairway:
Echo Teebird (somewhat overstable, can be put on a anny)
Glo Buzzz
Camp Roc3
Super Soft Wizard
Vibram VP
OK, so I have TONS of understable discs. All are somewhat different. But I feel like it's too much to hall around. When I play at lunch I take only 5 discs with me.
Quick Bag
Z Avenger (overstable driver)
Glo Road Runner (understable driver)
Eco Teebird (fairway driver)
Roc3 (mid-range)
VP (putter)
Now I find that when I play with my "full bag" I reach for the discs that I use at lunch more because I am better at them. However, there are some discs in my full bag which are sort of utilities that I still enjoy.
Since I play am tees, I actually have been driving with my VP and Roc3 more and more. I can get the VP to almost go 200 and a predictable hyzer. And the Roc3 is a nice straight / subtle right shot. But I don't feel like I need my buzz b/c I know how to hyzer the Roc3 too.
Any suggestions on what I could trim. Maybe even something that would all out replace something? I considered replacing the Z Avenger with the Destroyer and using my PD instead of a Teebird in my short bag. I love the Pro Katana, it goes super far (I used to use a pro wraith), but its just sort of chaotic.
I love to play. I have been around +1 on my local courses lately. I have too many discs in my trunk and I dont feel like anyone needs more than 8 discs so I want to trim down a bit. But I also love trying new discs.
Thanks for the input!!!


text:
Smoke Women T-Shirt
Product Color:
Product information
The Women T-Shirt Smoke is our old-school favorite. Perfect for use in sports where you are bound to sweat and need wide range of movement. Short sleeves to let cool air in on those hot and sunny days. Also great for every day use and to show everyone your love for Smoke.
This product is made of the finest combed jersey which feels soothing against your skin. Shoulder-to-shoulder taping guarantees long life and a good fit. Life Women T-Shirt is available in 17 different color options. Heather Grey: 80% Cotton/20% Polyester. Remaining Colors: 100% Cotton.
Sku: TC2BL0000038952323230005WHYG00000


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Save 10% off MSRP!
Attention Support!
VÄXA® Attend® is a doctor-formulated homeopathic medicinal which has been specifically engineered to help support the function of the central nervous system (CNS). Attend is especially useful in individuals who are inclined to be inattentive, under or overactive, and/or learning impaired. This formula empowers the body to help balance both neural growth and neurotransmitter production by addressing many of the underlying factors which contribute to attention and focus.
Attend® was designed to address a broad number of common issues that relate to attention in both children and adults. This product is for the student who needs extra help in school, to the professional who needs to coordinate multiple tasks, or even the athlete looking to sharpen their coordination.
Why is Attend® considered advanced?
Attend has a multi-dimensional formulation containing over 95 ingredients. This formula incorporates homeopathic remedies as well as herbal and nutritional components. Due to it effectiveness, Attend is accepted for use by the Feingold Association and is featured in the Prescription for Nutritional Healing, both of which are recognized as experts in natural health solutions.
Are their any side-effects or does it contain stimulants?
There are no side-effects to using Attend. The formula is safe, non-toxic and contains no stimulants. Although Attend contains the ingredient, caffeinum, it is in homeopathic form, thus producing the opposite effect on the body that caffeine has. Attend also contains both lithium bromatum and carbonicum in homeopathic forms which are considered safe due to their high dilutions. This product will not cause drowsiness.
How long does before Attend® starts to work?
Most people who do not have a medical condition can see results in as little as two weeks, whereas those with certain conditions can take a number of months to see outward results. However, Attend begins to work from the moment you take it. Outward noticeable results may take several days to several weeks depending on the person., their overall health, and the severity of the issue.
Do you have difficulty swallowing capsules?
For children or individuals having difficulty swallowing capsules, try VÄXA® Attend mini . Appropriately named for it's miniature size, Attend mini provides the same formula as regular Attend, but in smaller capsules for easier swallowing. Keep in mind 120 mini capsules is equivalent to 60 regular capsules.
60 capsules
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text: magpies_fan Posted January 14, 2008 im in 2012 and i thought i might share my experience with everyone else. in all the years ive played on this save game so far Man City have always finnished top 4 Man Utd have always finnished outside of it and have sacked Ferguson Middlesbrough got relegated and then got promoted and then relegated again and there now BANKRUPT wigin and fulam are also struggling in the championship and they cant seem to get out of there! lol Nottingham Forest are in the Prem at the moment which very exciting what wierd and wonderful things have happened in your games? Thanks 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


text: The G60 bill recycling unit by Fujitsu is a real game-changer in the OEM channel when it comes to currency deposits, withdrawals and counterfeit detection in a small package. Built to Fujitsu's exacting standards, there is finally true reliability in a smaller recycling unit. With four recycle cassettes, one deposit box and one loading cassette,


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In this video, a simple day at the pool is the perfect venue for sponsor Hunter Hardin and his friend, Rony, to play, talk and deepen their friendship.
Watch more trip testimonials
Margaret Looper discovers how important a bag of groceries really is.
A Philippines community puts on a special performance for Colleen Gawley.
Learn about going on a CFCA mission awareness trip, which provides opportunities for sponsors and their friends to get to know each other.


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Rapid Refried Beans
That pot of baked beans left over from last night's get-together can make a great change-of-pace side dish today. I use my potato masher to mash the beans and then I fry them in bacon drippings. The beans are perfect with beef tacos or enchiladas, and they're even great at breakfast alongside eggs. —Alex Lara, Kingsville, Texas
© 2017 RDA Enthusiast Brands, LLC


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Our Thoughts
Slip into a comfy Metro Racing Honda Vintage Hoodie and no matter how fast or slow you go you'll look like you're ready for some serious fun! Metro hoodies are just right for riding or wearing around when a jacket is too much and a shirt is not enough. With endless choices, your favorite logos, they are sure to get maximum attention.


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Education Planning Basics
- ABCs of financial aid
Understanding financial aid is important because it can determine whether your child attends the college of his or her choice--or attends college at all. Financial aid can consist of loans, grants, scholarships, or work-study. Some financial aid is based on need, and some is based on merit. Merit aid comes from colleges and other institutions in the form of scholarships and grants. The federal government is the main provider of need-based aid, and a child's need is determined by the government's aid application, the FAFSA. Colleges use a form called the PROFILE to identify the most financially needy students.
- Comparison of Types of Educational Assistance
- Education tax credits
You just paid your child's semester bill for college--do you qualify for either the American Opportunity credit (Hope credit) or the Lifetime Learning credit, two education tax credits? Qualifying will depend on your modified adjusted gross income and the amount of qualified tuition and related expenses you've paid over a given year. The American Opportunity credit covers the first four years of undergraduate education, and is generally worth a maximum of $2,500 a year for each qualifying student. The Lifetime Learning credit can be used for continuing education courses, and generally has a $2,000 limit per tax return.
- Income-Based Repayment (IBR) for Federal Student Loans
The federal government's income-based repayment program (IBR) for student loans allows qualified borrowers to tie their monthly federal student loan payments to their discretionary income. A new version of the IBR program called "Pay As You Earn" took effect on December 21, 2012 (it was originally scheduled to be phased in during 2014, but the Obama administration took regulatory measures to make it available sooner). The potential for IBR to change the landscape for college borrowers is enormous. According to the U.S. Department of Education, as of last October, about two million borrowers had applied for IBR.


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Official selection of Saint Louis International Film Festival "indie-fest", 2009 "Hollywood Film Festival" & "NOOR Film Festival" in Los Angeles
About the film
California prisons are in crisis. Inmates are dying at an unusually high rate, rehabilitation programs are minimal, and a federal receiver has taken control of the prison health care system. Prisons are severely overcrowded – with 173,000 prisoners sleeping in gyms, dayrooms and classrooms – and state prison facilities will likely run out of space by this time next year. California has the highest recidivism rate in the country: 70 percent of prisoners are re-imprisoned within three years.
After spending nearly 15 years in solitary confinement, Otis (Kevin Durand: Smoking Aces, 3:10 To Yuma, Wild Hogs) is released back into society. Under the supervision of Los Angeles County Probation Officer, John Anderson (Mike Wiles: Transformers, Art School Confidential), he moves into a transitional facility, run by Al (Jack Kehler: winner of the Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor opposite Phillip Seymour Hoffman in Love Liza, also Fever Pitch, The Big Lebowski), where his re-assimilation can be monitored.
Otis attempts to start a new life but the past is too enticing. He heads to a local Taxi Dancer club where he meets Penny (Tammy Trull: Harsh Times, Havoc), a dancer who seems to care about him. This being so unfamiliar to Otis, he stays with her far beyond his curfew.
Fearing the consequences of violating his parole, he decides not to return at all. During breakfast, Otis is approached by Hamid (David Diaan), a Persian Rug salesman. He offers Otis a job helping with his deliveries. Otis agrees and Hamid takes him to an isolated desert community to revisit some previous customers. Among these, the compound of the evangelist broadcaster, Reverend Roy (Peter Stormare Whom finished playing mobster John Abruzzi in the hit TV series "PRISON BREAK" this last fall, he is easily remembered in the smash hits FARGO, THE Big Lebowski, Minority Report, the multiple Oscar nominated Chocolat and Lars Von Trier's critically acclaimed Dancer In The Dark) with his congregation of vestal vixens, and the exotic artist Palma who decides Otis deserves a place in a mythological mural she is painting.
As officer Anderson learns of Otis' disappearance, he decides that he must lead the search to find the missing parolee. During the investigation, bits of Otis' troubled and violent past are revealed, including his forced involvement in prison gladiator matches. When they learn of Penny, they find she is missing as well. Officer Anderson fears the worst. Following the GPS on Otis' leg bracelet, Officer Anderson heads to the desert. He meets up with the local Sheriff and they relentlessly track Otis and Hamid throughout their odyssey, culminating in a final confrontation between Otis, the law and destiny.
excerpt from an article printed in "sandiego union tribune" August 31st
Inside these failing American correctional institutions, Security Housing Units are overflowing with men deemed unfit for general population. Solitary confinement. Human contact restricted to the guards who deliver their meals. Allowed only five minutes a week to shower. Exposure to sunlight limited to one hour a day in a cell with a chain link ceiling. After years of mental and physical abuse, these men are then released upon society without rehabilitation. Criminals are not reformed but refined.....(Article by Amanda Bailey & Joseph Hayes, Published August 31st)


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Rockies to honor Helton all weekend
DENVER -- Friday marks the beginning of the Rockies' three-day celebration of first baseman Todd Helton's career, with it all culminating in his jersey retirement ceremony on Sunday.
The first 15,000 fans in attendance for Friday's game against the Reds received a commemorative Todd Helton "Farewell" bobblehead.
On Saturday, there will be another Helton-themed giveaway with the first 15,000 fans through the gates receiving a Todd Helton Player Collectible Jersey, presented by King Soopers.
And on Sunday, the first 15,000 fans in Coors Field for Helton's retirement ceremony will be treated to Todd Helton "Retire 17" Bobblehead Gnomes.
All weekend long, the Rockies will be using baseballs featuring a No. 17 logo for the three-game series. Likewise, all bases will feature the same logo.
Helton played his entire career for the Rockies from 1997-2013. In those 17 seasons, he earned three Gold Gloves, four Silver Sluggers and five All-Star Game berths.
Helton's finest season came in 2000, when he tied Nomar Garciaparra with a Major League-best average of .372. He also led all of baseball in doubles (59), RBIs (147) and slugging (.698) that year.
Helton is the Rockies' all-time leader in games played (2,519), homers (369), RBIs (1,406), hits (2,519), runs (1,401), singles (1,521), doubles (592) and walks (1,335).
Cody Ulm is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Commuters are facing severe delays this morning following a serious accident on the M4 involving five vehicles.
The M4 has been closed eastbound between Junction 15 at Swindon and Junction 14 near Hungerford after an accident involving loose horses approximately two hours ago.
A Wiltshire Police spokesman said several horses had made their way on to the carriageway near Membury, causing one car to swerve and flip.
Police say the motorway has now reopened after they moved swfitly to clear away debris and carry out repairs.
As a result of the accident traffic is very heavy on the A420 and A419, the weight of traffic is causing queues to build up all the way back to the Greenbridge roundabout.
Another crash at Mannington roundabout on the Great Western Way is causing further delays for drivers coming in to Swindon from Junction 16 this morning.


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RETRIeVE: ReversE TranscRiptase Inhibitor hiV Practice
This study has been completed.
Holdsworth House Medical Practice
Information provided by (Responsible Party):
Dr. Mark Bloch, Holdsworth House Medical Practice
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
First received: June 30, 2010
Last updated: September 17, 2015
Last verified: September 2015
- Full Text View
- Tabular View
- No Study Results Posted
- Disclaimer
- How to Read a Study Record
Detailed Description:
An observational retrospective study of NNRTI experienced patients who have virologically failed. The study aims to assess resistance profiling and subsequent prescription patterns of patients on NNRTIs
|HIV Positive
|Study Type:
|Study Design:
|Time Perspective: Retrospective
|Official Title:
|Non-nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitor Failure in a High HIV Caseload Australian Primary Care Practice
Resource links provided by NLM:
MedlinePlus related topics: HIV/AIDSU.S. FDA Resources
Further study details as provided by Dr. Mark Bloch, Holdsworth House Medical Practice:
Primary Outcome Measures:
- resistance profiling and subsequent prescription patterns of patients on NNRTIs [ Time Frame: 1 year ]
|Study Start Date:
|June 2010
|Study Completion Date:
|February 2013
|Primary Completion Date:
|September 2011 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)
|HIV1 positive, NNRTI exposure and failure
Detailed Description:
This is a cross-sectional study involving retrospective review of HIV-1 positive patient records who began treatment with a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) and subsequently failed. Patients who have virologically failed previous NNRTI treatment, or have resistance to 1 drug in the NNRTI class are examined further. Such patients will have attended the clinic every 3-6 months for routine medical care. The data source for variables collected is the patient's electronic medical records. This database is located at Holdsworth House Medical Practice (HHMP), Sydney.
|Ages Eligible for Study:
|Child, Adult, Senior
|Sexes Eligible for Study:
|Accepts Healthy Volunteers:
|Sampling Method:
|Probability Sample
Study Population
Demographic information will be collected from patient medical records for all patients that have used previously, or are currently using an NNRTI as part of HIV treatment therapy.
Inclusion Criteria:
- Documented HIV infection
- Attended Holdsworth House Medical Practice 1999-2009.
- Chosen ART regime includes an NNRTI
Exclusion Criteria: N/A
Contacts and Locations
Choosing to participate in a study is an important personal decision. Talk with your doctor and family members or friends about deciding to join a study. To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the Contacts provided below. For general information, see Learn About Clinical Studies.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01154556
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01154556
|Australia, New South Wales
|Holdsworth House Medical Practice
|Darlinghurst, New South Wales, Australia, 2010
Sponsors and Collaborators
Holdsworth House Medical Practice
More Information
Keywords provided by Dr. Mark Bloch, Holdsworth House Medical Practice:
Additional relevant MeSH terms:
ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on September 21, 2017
|Responsible Party:
|Dr. Mark Bloch, Principal Investigator, Holdsworth House Medical Practice
|ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
|NCT01154556 History of Changes
|Other Study ID Numbers:
|Study First Received:
|June 30, 2010
|Last Updated:
|September 17, 2015
Keywords provided by Dr. Mark Bloch, Holdsworth House Medical Practice:
Antiretroviral therapy experienced
failed NNRTI regime
Additional relevant MeSH terms:
HIV Seropositivity
HIV Infections
Lentivirus Infections
Retroviridae Infections
RNA Virus Infections
Virus Diseases
Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Viral
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes
Immune System Diseases
Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors
Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors
Enzyme Inhibitors
Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action
Anti-Retroviral Agents
Antiviral Agents
Anti-Infective Agents
ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on September 21, 2017


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'As a result, they moved to within four points of the Islanders, who hold the eighth and final playoff spot in the East. The Rangers have 72 points with seven games remaining as they head into a game in Philadelphia on Saturday. They are all huge games at this point, and the Rangers, so disappointing in a 3-1 loss to the Devils on Saturday, have responded to the pressure by playing their best hockey of the year.'
You are here: Home / SabresBeat / Dunham stars again


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American Sensor Technologies' Pressure Transducer Brochure
AST's pressure transducer brochure highlights various sensor types including pressure transducers and transmitters, differential pressure transducers, and multi-variable transmitters. An explanation of various process connection, electrical connection and environmental options are covered to easily explain some of the common factors in pressure transducer selection. Stationary hydraulic, mobile hydraulic and transportation applications are some of the highlighted items within the brochure.
Download a copy of the PDF brochure.
Download a copy of the PDF brochure.


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http://twitter.com/#!/IamThaKing25Jeff Foster has on black uggs
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http://twitter.com/#!/IamThaKing25Jeff Foster has on black uggs
Stop quoting people I have on ignore!
Can anyone translate that? lol
Check out dahntay, he's got a pic. Paul supports him, although I'm not sure I can any longer. I thought about starting the thread but just posted in the post game thread.
What's he tryna say?
Jesus, Jeff. Have some ****ing self respect.
Should've bought some Moon Shoes.. ****ing Bogut.
So unexpected. Caught me totally off guard
Those Uggz are warm as hell though.
...before anyone asks, no, I don't own them. I squeezed my feet into my ex-girlfriends slippers one time. Okay, more than once. **** you. Don't judge me.
to his credit, they actually do have Men's Uggs...they're just a no no if you wanna look masculine lol
Jeff shouldn't be allowed back in indy until he takes off the uggs... he shames the franchise, the fans, and the entire city of indianapolis with his fasion choice
And of all people to wear these? Jeff....you are losing your cred
wow...Jeff in UGGS....I have no idea what to say about this
It's a new day for Pacers Basketball.
The man makes the clothes, the clothes don't make the man.
Jeff really is Zoolander.
Really though, Jeff? He is the last guy I would ever expect to be wearing those.
Freddie Mercury would have loved Ugg Boots
Ahh, but see, my girlfriend was hot. Don't see that much in West Lafayette
Tom Brady sponsors Uggs. Or the other way around, whatever. I'm just surprised they have sizes big enough for a 6'10 man.
That's the real reason Jeff should feel ashamed.
I think there's a pair of uggs made for men. Not really sure since I just heard about it.


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Annual Report 2011
Other Federal Reserve Operations
Regulatory Developments: Dodd-Frank Act Implementation
In this Section:
The Federal Reserve continued to work diligently throughout 2011 to implement the many regulatory changes required under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the Dodd-Frank Act or the act) (Pub. L. No. 111-203).
Enacted on July 21, 2010, the Dodd-Frank Act seeks to address critical gaps and weaknesses in the U.S. regulatory framework that were revealed by the financial crisis. The act gives the Federal Reserve important responsibilities to issue rules to enhance financial stability and preserve the safety and soundness of the banking system.
In addition to membership on the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC), the Federal Reserve's new responsibilities include the supervision of savings and loan holding companies (SLHCs) as well as oversight of nonbank financial firms and certain payment, clearing, and settlement utilities that the FSOC designates as systemically important. In consultation with other agencies, the Federal Reserve also is responsible for developing more stringent prudential standards for all large banking organizations and for nonbank firms designated by the FSOC as systemically important.
As of December 31, 2011, the Board had issued seventeen final rules, four public notices, and nine reports required by the act. The Board had also proposed an additional 15 rules for public comment.1 (See box 1 for additional information.)
Box 1. Dodd-Frank Implementation Progresses in 2011
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) gives the Federal Reserve important responsibilities to enhance financial stability and preserve the safety and soundness of the banking system. In 2011, staff throughout the Federal Reserve System participated in a wide range of rulemakings and other projects designed to implement these new responsibilities. While a sizable number of projects have already been completed, additional work is needed to ensure the Board's obligations under the Dodd-Frank Act are met quickly, carefully, and responsibly.
As of December 31, 2011, the Board had issued seventeen final rules, four public notices, and nine reports required by the act. The Board also has provided assistance to the Financial Stability Oversight Council, facilitated the transition of certain authority from the Office of Thrift Supervision to the Board, helped with the establishment of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Office of Financial Research, and participated in several joint rulemakings and consultations with other agencies.
For a full list of initiatives completed in 2011 (and to preview 2012 initiatives), visit the Board's Regulatory Reform website at www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/reform_milestones.htm.Return to text
The Rulemaking Process
With each regulation, the Board seeks to identify--and, to the extent possible consistent with statutory requirements, minimize--the regulatory burden imposed by the rule. The Board does this in a variety of ways, and at several different stages in the regulatory process. For example, before developing a regulatory proposal, the Board often collects information through surveys and meetings directly from the parties that might be affected by the rulemaking. These efforts help the Board become more informed about the benefits and costs of the proposed rule and enable it to craft a proposal that is both effective and that minimizes regulatory burden.
During the rulemaking process, the Board also specifically seeks comment from the public on the benefits and costs of the proposed approach as well as on a variety of alternative approaches to the proposal.
In adopting the final rule, the Board aims for a regulatory approach that faithfully reflects the statutory provisions and the intent of Congress while minimizing regulatory burden. The Board also provides an analysis of the costs to small organizations of the rulemaking, consistent with the Regulatory Flexibility Act, and computes the anticipated costs of paperwork, consistent with the Paperwork Reduction Act.
Changes to Banking Supervision and Regulation
The Board has issued a variety of final rules to implement the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act that are designed to promote the safety and soundness of the banking system. Following is a summary of the key regulatory initiatives that were completed during 2011 under the act.
Regulatory Capital
The Dodd-Frank Act establishes floors for regulatory capital requirements applied to domestic bank holding companies (BHCs) and designated nonbank financial companies supervised by the Board. Specifically, section 171 of the act requires the Board to establish minimum risk-based capital and leverage requirements for BHCs that are not less than the "generally applicable" capital requirements for insured depository institutions.
Consistent with this provision, on June 14, 2011, the Board adopted a final rule amending its capital framework to require a banking organization operating under the advanced approaches risk-based capital rules to meet the higher of the minimum requirements under the generally applicable capital requirements and the minimum requirements under the advanced approaches risk-based capital rules.
This rule was promulgated jointly with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). In the coming months, the federal banking agencies expect to jointly propose revisions to their regulatory capital rules consistent with changes to international capital standards issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. The proposed rules would be consistent with the capital requirements established under section 171 of the act.
Resolution Planning
The Dodd-Frank Act requires BHCs with total consolidated assets of $50 billion or more and any nonbank financial company supervised by the Board (collectively, covered companies) to periodically submit to the Board, the FDIC, and the FSOC a plan for such company's rapid and orderly resolution, under the bankruptcy code, in the event of material financial distress or failure. These resolution plans, or "living wills," will assist covered companies and regulators in conducting advance resolution planning for a covered company.
On October 17, 2011, the Board and the FDIC issued a final rule requiring covered companies to annually submit resolution plans. Large, complex covered companies are required to submit a resolution plan that covers the entire organization. Smaller, less complex companies can file a streamlined resolution plan.
The Board's resolution plan rule is codified as Regulation QQ (12 CFR part 243). A company's resolution plan must describe the company's strategy for rapid and orderly resolution in bankruptcy during a time of financial distress or failure of the company, and the plan must include information concerning the company's operations and funding.
Under Regulation QQ, a company's resolution plan must also include information regarding the manner and extent to which any insured depository institution affiliated with the company is adequately protected from risks arising from the activities of nonbank subsidiaries of the company; detailed descriptions of the ownership structure, assets, liabilities, and contractual obligations of the company; identification of the cross-guarantees tied to different securities; and a description of the governance and oversight process related to resolution planning.
The act also instructed the Board to conduct two studies in consultation with the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts regarding the resolution of financial companies: one regarding the resolution of domestic financial companies under the Bankruptcy Code, and one regarding international coordination relating to the resolution of systemic financial companies under the Bankruptcy Code and applicable foreign laws. The Board issued both studies in July 2011.2
Supervision of SLHCs
The act transferred all supervisory and regulatory authority over SLHCs from the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) to the Board, effective July 21, 2011 (the transfer date). It also grants the Board the authority to examine, obtain reports from, and establish consolidated capital standards for SLHCs.
The Board undertook several initiatives to provide SLHCs with advance notice of how the Board would supervise and regulate SLHCs after the transfer date.
- The Board, OTS, OCC, and FDIC issued a joint report on January 25, 2011, regarding the agencies' plans to implement the transfer of OTS authorities on January 25, 2011.
- The Board issued a public notice on February 3, 2011, of its intention to require SLHCs to submit the same regulatory reports as BHCs.3
- The Board issued a public notice on April 15, 2011, that described how the Board would apply certain parts of its consolidated supervisory program for BHCs to SLHCs after the transfer date. On the transfer date, the Board issued a public notice of all the OTS regulations that the Board would continue to enforce.
- The Board issued an interim final rule on August 12, 2011, establishing regulations for SLHCs. New Regulation LL, governing SLHCs generally, and new Regulation MM, governing SLHCs in mutual form, transfer from the OTS to the Board the regulations necessary for the Board to administer the statutes governing SLHCs.
Debit Interchange
Section 1075 of the act restricts the interchange fees that debit card issuers may receive for electronic debit card transactions. Specifically, under the act, the interchange fee an issuer receives for a particular transaction must be reasonable and proportional to the cost incurred by the issuer with respect to the transaction. The act requires the Board to set standards for determining whether an interchange fee is reasonable and proportional to the issuer's cost and permits the Board to adjust the interchange fee to account for an issuer's fraud-prevention costs. In addition, it requires the Board to prescribe rules prohibiting network exclusivity arrangements and routing restrictions in connection with electronic debit card transactions.
On June 29, 2011, the Board issued a final rule to establish standards for debit card interchange fees. Under the final rule, the maximum permissible interchange fee that an issuer may receive for an electronic debit transaction is the sum of 21 cents per transaction and 5 basis points multiplied by the value of the transaction. This provision regarding debit card interchange fees became effective on October 1, 2011. Also on June 29, the Board issued an interim final rule that allows for an upward adjustment of no more than one cent to an issuer's debit card interchange fee, provided the issuer satisfies the fraud-prevention standards set forth in the interim final rule. The interim final rule became effective on October 1, 2011.
In accordance with the statute, the final rule exempts issuers that, together with their affiliates, have assets of less than $10 billion from the debit card interchange fee standards. To facilitate implementation of the small issuer exemption, the Board has published lists of institutions with consolidated assets above and below the $10 billion exemption threshold and plans to survey networks and publish annually the average interchange fees each network provides to its exempt and nonexempt issuers.
In addition, the rule prohibits all issuers and networks from restricting the number of networks over which electronic debit transactions may be processed to less than two unaffiliated networks. The rule also prohibits issuers and networks from inhibiting a merchant's ability to direct the routing of the electronic debit transaction over any network that the issuer has enabled to process them.
The Board also has issued several reports regarding interchange fees, as required by the act. On June 29, 2011, the Board issued a report disclosing certain aggregate and summary information concerning transaction processing costs and interchange transaction fees charged or received in connection with electronic debit transactions.4 On July 21, 2011, the Board issued a report on the use of prepaid cards by government-administered payment programs as well as the interchange and cardholder fees charged with respect to such prepaid cards.5
Interest on Demand Deposits
Section 627 of the act repealed the provision of the Federal Reserve Act that prohibited member banks from paying interest on demand deposits. This prohibition had been implemented through the Board's Regulation Q. On July 14, 2011, the Board issued a final rule repealing Regulation Q and thereby allowing member banks to pay interest on demand deposits.
Key Regulatory Initiatives Still in Development
A number of important regulatory developments remain in the proposal stage. Following is a summary of additional regulatory initiatives that the Board proposed in 2011.
Enhanced Prudential Standards for Financial Firms
The act requires the Board to establish heightened prudential standards for covered companies.6 The heightened standards must be more stringent than the standards that apply to other nonbank financial companies and BHCs that do not pose similar risks to the financial system.
On December 20, 2011, the Board proposed enhanced prudential standards related to capital, limits on credit exposure to single counterparties, liquidity, stress testing, and risk management. The enhanced prudential standards are intended to strengthen the financial resilience of covered companies and limit the exposure of such companies to individual counterparties. The proposed standards generally apply to covered companies other than covered companies that are foreign banking organizations (U.S. covered companies). The Board expects to issue a separate proposal that would apply the enhanced prudential standards to foreign banking organizations (FBOs).
The proposed standards would subject U.S. covered companies to the Board's capital plan rule, which the Board approved on November 22, 2011. Under the capital plan rule, the Federal Reserve annually would evaluate institutions' capital adequacy; their internal capital adequacy assessment processes; and their plans to make capital distributions, such as dividend payments or stock repurchases. The Federal Reserve would not object to proposed dividend increases or other capital distributions only if companies are able to demonstrate sufficient financial strength to operate as successful financial intermediaries under stressed macroeconomic and financial market scenarios, even after making the desired capital distributions.
The enhanced prudential standards would also apply a net limit for credit exposure of a U.S. covered company to any single counterparty as a percentage of the company's regulatory capital. In addition, the standards would set a two-tier single-counterparty credit limit, with a more stringent credit limit applied to credit exposures between the largest U.S. covered companies and large counterparties.
Further, the proposed standards would establish a general limit that prohibits a U.S. covered company from having aggregate net credit exposures to any single unaffiliated counterparty in excess of 25 percent of the enhanced standard company's capital stock and surplus. The proposal also would set a more stringent 10 percent aggregate net credit exposure limit between nonbank covered companies and BHCs with total consolidated assets of $500 billion or more (collectively, "major covered companies") on the one hand, and counterparties that are major covered companies or FBOs with total consolidated assets of $500 billion or more on the other hand.
Also under the proposed standards, U.S. covered companies would be required to comply with qualitative liquidity risk-management standards generally based on interagency liquidity risk-management guidance. Specifically, the proposal would require U.S. covered companies to conduct internal liquidity stress tests and set internal quantitative limits to manage liquidity risk.
In addition, the Board would conduct annual stress tests of U.S. covered companies using three economic and financial market scenarios and publish a summary of the results, including company-specific information. The proposed standards also would require U.S. covered companies and state member banks, BHCs, and--subject to a delayed effective date--SLHCs with assets above $10 billion to conduct one or more company-run stress tests each year and make a summary of the results public.
Moreover, the standards would require U.S. covered companies and publicly traded BHCs with total consolidated assets of $10 billion or more to establish risk committees of their boards of directors and to institute enterprise-wide risk-management programs that would be overseen by the risk committees. The proposal also would require that each U.S. covered company retain a chief risk officer, and maintain its risk committee as a separately chartered committee of the board of directors.
Finally, the proposed standards would establish early remediation triggers--such as capital levels, stress test results, and risk-management weaknesses--so that financial weaknesses are addressed by U.S. covered companies at an early stage.
Prohibitions against Proprietary Trading and Other Activities
Section 619 of the Dodd-Frank Act generally prohibits banking entities from engaging in short-term proprietary trading for a banking entity's own account, subject to certain exemptions. That section also prohibits a banking entity from owning, sponsoring, or having certain relationships with a hedge fund or private equity fund, subject to certain exemptions. These prohibitions are commonly known as the "Volcker rule." The prohibitions and restrictions contained in the Volcker rule apply to all insured depository institutions; BHCs; SLHCs; companies that control an industrial loan company; foreign banks with a branch, agency, or subsidiary bank in the United States; and affiliates and subsidiaries of these entities.
The Board, OCC, FDIC, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are responsible for developing and adopting regulations to implement the prohibitions and restrictions of the Volcker rule. On October 11, 2011, the Board requested comment on a proposed rule, developed jointly with the other agencies, to implement the Volcker rule. The proposal would implement the Volcker rule's prohibitions and, consistent with statutory authority, would provide certain key statutory exemptions, including market making, underwriting, and risk-mitigating hedging. On December 23, 2011, the Board, FDIC, OCC, and SEC extended the comment period on the proposal to implement the Volcker rule through February 13, 2012.
The Board alone is responsible for adopting rules to implement the conformance period provisions of the Volcker rule. On February 9, 2011, the Board issued a final rule to give banking entities a period of time to conform their activities and investments to the prohibitions and restrictions of the Volcker rule. The final rule includes a general two-year conformance period, and it allows the Board to extend, by rule or order, this two-year period by up to three one-year periods. In addition, the final rule implements a special five-year extended transition period available for certain qualifying investments in hedge funds and certain private equity funds. The conformance period is intended to give markets and firms an opportunity to adjust to the Volcker rule.
Regulation of Derivative Markets
The act makes a number of significant changes to the regulation of derivatives, which it refers to as "swaps" and "security-based swaps," as well as to the regulation of participants in the derivatives markets.
In general, the act requires (1) all standardized derivatives to be centrally cleared and traded on an exchange or registered execution facility; (2) all derivatives to be reported to registered data repositories; (3) all derivatives dealers ("swap dealers") and major market participants ("major swap participants") to register with the SEC and/or the CFTC; and (4) the establishment of new, regulated organizations to support the derivatives market, including exchanges, clearing organizations, and data repositories. In addition, the act amends sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act by, among other things, expanding the definition of "covered transaction" to include credit exposure of a bank or its subsidiaries to an affiliate resulting from a derivative transaction.
On April 12, 2011, the Board issued a joint proposed rule with the Farm Credit Administration, FDIC, Federal Housing Finance Agency, and OCC to establish margin and capital requirements for swap dealers, major swap participants, security-based swap dealers, and security-based swap participants (collectively, "swap entities"). The proposed rule would require certain swap entities regulated by the five agencies to collect minimum amounts of initial margin and variation margin from counterparties to non-cleared swaps and non-cleared, security-based swaps.
The amount of margin that would be required under the proposed rule would vary based on the relative risk of the counterparty and of the swap or security-based swap. A swap entity would not be required to collect margin from a commercial end user as long as its margin exposure is below an appropriate credit exposure limit established by the swap entity.
On July 28, 2011, the Board issued a proposed rule that would set standards for banking organizations regulated by the Federal Reserve that engage in certain types of foreign exchange transactions with retail customers. The proposal outlines requirements for disclosure, recordkeeping, business conduct, and documentation for retail foreign exchange transactions. Institutions engaging in such transactions would be required to identify themselves to their regulator and to be well capitalized. They would also be required to collect margin for retail foreign exchange transactions.
Removal of References to Credit Ratings from Capital Guidelines
Section 939A of the act requires all federal agencies to review their regulations within one year after passage of the act to identify any reference to or requirements regarding credit ratings, and issue a report to Congress upon conclusion of the review. The Board completed the required review of its regulations and issued a report to Congress on July 25, 2011.7
Section 939A also requires the agencies to remove any reference to, or requirements of reliance on, credit ratings in regulations that require the use of an assessment of creditworthiness of a security or money-market instrument. On August 10, 2010, the Board, FDIC, and OCC issued an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking regarding alternatives to the use of credit ratings in their risk-based capital rules. The Board, with the FDIC and OCC, also held a roundtable discussion with industry, academic, and other participants in November 2010 to hear views on how to develop alternatives to credit ratings. The staffs of the agencies considered comments received on the advanced notice of proposed rulemaking as well as at the roundtable discussion as they worked to develop alternatives.
On December 7, 2011, the Board, FDIC, and OCC issued a second notice of proposed rulemaking that would modify the agencies' market risk capital rules for banking organizations with significant trading activities. The modified notice of proposed rulemaking included alternative standards of creditworthiness that would be used in place of credit ratings to determine the capital requirements for certain debt and securitization positions covered by the market risk capital rules. The Board anticipates that it will propose additional amendments to remove references to credit ratings from its regulations in the near future.
Credit-Risk Retention
Section 941(b) of the act imposes certain credit-risk retention obligations on securitizers or originators of assets securitized through the issuance of asset-backed securities (ABS). On March 29, 2011, the Board issued a joint proposed rule with five other federal agencies that would require securitizers to retain risk through one of several options, which were designed to take into account market practices and securitization structures across different asset classes. Under the proposed rule, sponsors of ABS would be required to retain at least 5 percent of the credit risk of the assets underlying the securities.
As required by the act, the proposed rule includes a variety of exemptions from the requirement that sponsors of ABS retain credit risk of the assets underlying the securities, including an exemption for U.S. government-guaranteed ABS and for mortgage-backed securities that are collateralized exclusively by residential mortgages that qualify as qualified residential mortgages (QRMs). In addition, the proposal would establish a definition for QRMs--incorporating such criteria as borrower credit history, payment terms, down payment for purchased mortgages, and loan-to-value ratio--designed to ensure they are of very high credit quality.
Ultimately, the proposed rule aims to ensure that the amount of credit risk retained by sponsors is meaningful, while taking into account market practices and reducing the potential for the rule to affect negatively the availability and cost of credit to consumers and businesses.
The agencies received more than 13,000 comments (including more than 300 non-form substantive comments) on the proposed rule. The staffs of the rulemaking agencies have been meeting regularly to discuss the comments and options for moving forward on the rulemaking.
Payment, Settlement, and Clearing Activities and Utilities
The act gives the FSOC the authority to identify and designate as systemically important a financial market utility (FMU) if the FSOC determines that failure of or a disruption to the FMU could create or increase the risk of significant liquidity or credit problems spreading among financial institutions or markets and thereby threaten the stability of the U.S. financial system.
On July 18, 2011, the FSOC issued a final rule describing the criteria that will inform its processes and procedures for designating an FMU as systemically important. Under the rule, which incorporates the act's criteria, the FSOC will consider the aggregate monetary value of transactions processed by an FMU; the aggregate exposure of an FMU to its counterparties; the relationship, interdependencies, or other interactions of an FMU with other FMUs; and the effect that the failure of or disruption to an FMU would have on critical markets, financial institutions, or the broader financial system. The FSOC also will perform a more in-depth review and analysis of specific FMUs from both a quantitative and qualitative perspective before making a designation.
In addition, the act authorizes the Board to prescribe risk-management standards governing the operations of designated FMUs (except for designated FMUs that are registered with the CFTC as derivative clearing organizations or registered with the SEC as clearing agencies). On March 30, 2011, the Board proposed a rule establishing risk-management standards governing the operations related to payment, clearing, and settlement activities of designated FMUs that are not registered with the CFTC or SEC. The proposed risk-management standards are based on the existing international standards that the Board has incorporated previously into its Policy on Payment System Risk. The proposed rule would also establish requirements and procedures for advance notice of material changes to the rules, procedures, or operations of a designated FMU for which the Board is the primary supervisor.
In addition, as required by the act, in July 2011 the Board, CFTC, and SEC issued a joint report to Congress containing recommendations for promoting robust risk-management standards and consistency in the supervisory programs of the CFTC and SEC for designated clearing entities.8
Executive Compensation
Section 956 of the act requires applicable federal regulators to develop jointly regulations or guidelines implementing disclosures and prohibitions concerning incentive-based compensation at depository institutions, depository institution holding companies, registered securities broker-dealers, credit unions, investment advisors, and certain government-sponsored enterprises (collectively, "covered financial institutions") with at least $1 billion in assets.
On April 14, 2011, the Board and other federal regulators requested comment on a proposal to implement the act's prohibition on incentive-based compensation arrangements. The proposal is significantly similar to the interagency guidance published in June 2010 on which the Federal Reserve led development. In particular, the proposal requires that incentive compensation practices at covered financial institutions be consistent with three key principles: (1) they should appropriately balance risk and financial rewards, (2) they should be compatible with effective controls and risk management, and (3) they should be supported by strong corporate governance.
Further, the agencies proposed that covered financial institutions with at least $1 billion in assets be required to have policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the requirements of the rule, and submit an annual report to their federal regulator describing the structure of their incentive compensation arrangements. The agencies also proposed that larger covered financial institutions--generally those with $50 billion or more in assets--defer at least 50 percent of the incentive compensation of certain executive officers for at least three years, and that the amounts ultimately paid reflect losses or other aspects of performance over time. The Board and other agencies are in the process of addressing public comments on the proposal.
Registration of Securities Holding Companies (SHCs)
The Dodd-Frank Act eliminated the SHC supervision framework pursuant to which the SEC supervised SHCs. In its place, the act permits an SHC to elect to register with and be supervised by the Board in order to satisfy the requirements of a foreign regulator or a provision of foreign law that the company be subject to comprehensive, consolidated supervision. On September 2, 2011, the Board invited public comment on a proposed rule outlining the registration requirements and procedures for SHCs.
Consumer Financial Protection
The Dodd-Frank Act made many enhancements to consumer financial protection, and the Board began implementing several of these enhancements prior to the transfer of rulemaking authority for most federal consumer protection statutes to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on July 21, 2011. For instance, the act amends the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and Consumer Leasing Act (CLA) to extend the protections of those laws to consumer credit transactions and consumer leases of higher dollar amounts. Before the Dodd-Frank Act, TILA and CLA applied to consumer credit transactions and consumer leases, respectively, of $25,000 or less. The Dodd-Frank Act increased this limit to $50,000 for each statute. On March 25, 2011, the Board issued a final rule amending Regulation Z (Truth in Lending) and Regulation M (Consumer Leasing) to reflect these higher thresholds.
The Dodd-Frank Act further amends TILA with respect to home mortgage lending. On February 23, 2011, the Board issued a final rule to increase the annual percentage rate threshold used to determine whether a mortgage lender is required to establish an escrow account for property taxes and insurance for first-lien jumbo mortgages. Also on February 23, the Board proposed a rule that would expand the minimum period for mandatory escrow accounts for first-lien, higher-priced mortgage loans from one to five years, and longer under certain circumstances. The proposed rule would provide an exemption from the escrow requirement for certain creditors that operate in rural or underserved communities. It also contains new disclosure requirements mandated by the Dodd-Frank Act. The proposed rule was transferred to the CFPB on the transfer date.
In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act generally prohibits lenders from making residential mortgage loans unless the consumer has a reasonable ability to repay the loan. On April 19, 2011, the Board proposed a rule to implement this provision. Under the Board's proposal, a lender could comply with the ability-to-repay requirement by considering and verifying specified underwriting factors, making certain types of qualified mortgages, or refinancing a non-standard mortgage into a more stable standard mortgage. The proposed rule also would implement the Dodd-Frank Act's limits on prepayment penalties. This proposed rule also was transferred to the CFPB on the transfer date.
Further, the Dodd-Frank Act amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to require a creditor to disclose credit scores and related information to a consumer when the creditor uses the consumer's credit score in setting material terms of credit or in taking adverse action. On July 6, 2011, the Board and the Federal Trade Commission issued final rules to implement this provision. The final rules revise the content requirements for risk-based pricing notices and add related model forms that reflect the new credit score disclosure requirements. The final rules were transferred to the CFPB on the transfer date.
On May 12, 2011, the Board issued a proposed rule to create protections for consumers who send remittance transfers to recipients located in a foreign country. Consistent with section 1073 of the Dodd-Frank Act, the Board proposed to amend Regulation E to require disclosure of information about fees, exchange rates, and amount of currency to be received by the recipient of a remittance transfer. The proposed rule, which was transferred to the CFPB on the transfer date, would also provide error resolution and cancellation rights for senders of remittance transfers. In addition, on July 19, 2011, the Board issued a report to Congress on the status of automated clearinghouse expansion for remittance transfers to foreign countries.9
The Board of Governors and the Government Performance and Results Act
In this Section:
The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993 requires that federal agencies, in consultation with Congress and outside stakeholders, prepare a strategic plan covering a multiyear period and an annual performance plan. The GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 refines those requirements to include quarterly performance reporting. Although the Federal Reserve is not covered by the GPRA, the Board of Governors voluntarily complies with the spirit of the act.
Strategic Plan, Performance Plan, and Performance Report
The Board's strategic plan articulates the Board's mission, sets forth major goals, outlines strategies for achieving those goals, and discusses the environment and other factors that could affect their achievement. It also addresses issues that cross agency jurisdictional lines, identifies key quantitative measures of performance, and discusses the evaluation of performance. The Board is currently revising its 2012-15 Strategic Plan, with Board approval anticipated in 2012.
The performance plan includes specific targets for some of the performance measures identified in the strategic plan and describes the operational processes and resources needed to meet those targets. It also discusses validation of data and verification of results. The performance report discusses the Board's performance in relation to its goals.
The strategic plan, performance plan, and performance report are available on the Board's website at www.federalreserve.gov/publications/gpra/default.htm.
1. These figures include Board actions since the enactment of the act on July 21, 2010. Return to text
2. The studies are available on the Board's website at www.federalreserve.gov/publications/other-reports/default.htm. Return to text
3. On December 23, 2011, the Board issued a final notice permitting a two-year phase-in period for most SLHCs to file Federal Reserve regulatory reports and an exemption for some SLHCs from initially filing such reports. Return to text
4. See 2009 Interchange Revenue, Covered Issuer Cost, and Covered Issuer and Merchant Fraud Loss Related to Debit Card Transactions, www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/files/debitfees_costs.pdf. Return to text
5. See Report to the Congress on Government-Administered, General-Use Prepaid Cards, www.federalreserve.gov/publications/other-reports/files/government-prepaid-report-201107.pdf. Return to text
6. See "Resolution Planning" for more information on covered companies. Return to text
7. See Report to the Congress on Credit Ratings, www.federalreserve.gov/publications/other-reports/files/credit-ratings-report-201107.pdf. Return to text
8. See Risk-Management Supervision of Designated Clearing Entities, www.federalreserve.gov/publications/other-reports/files/risk-management-supervision-report-201107.pdf. Return to text
9. See Report to the Congress on the Use of the Automated Clearinghouse System for Remittance Transfers to Foreign Countries, www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/rptcongress/ACH_report_201107.pdf. Return to text


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Gyorko using aggressiveness to limit strikeouts
PHOENIX -- Jedd Gyorko has already tied the Padres' rookie record with five home runs in May and needs one more home run to tie the club's rookie record for home runs hit in any month.
But it's the second baseman's strikeouts, or his lack thereof, that are also gaining attention.
Gyorko struck out 266 times in 1,502 plate appearances in three Minor League seasons. He has struck out 39 times in 189 plate appearance in the big leagues entering Sunday's series finale against the D-backs.
"I'm just trying to put the ball in play and battle with two strikes," Gyorko said. "The best way not to strike out is to not to get to two strikes, so I try to be aggressive early in the count. Hopefully, I can get my pitch and try to put a barrel on it."
That said, if Gyorko's next home run comes this month, it will put him in an interesting company of players.
Benito Santiago (1987), Will Venable (2009) and Nate Colbert (1969) all hit six home runs in one month as a rookie. Melvin Nieves hit five home runs in May as a rookie in 1995.
"I consider myself a gap-to-gap hitter, and if I get a hold of one, I have enough power to get it out," Gyorko said. "It comes back to getting back to a basic approach. In April, I wasn't hitting the ball with much authority, and this month I've been able to get my timing together."
Jesse Sanchez is a national reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @JesseSanchezMLB. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Visa and MasterCard announced a proposed $6.6 billion settlement to a long-running dispute over the fees they charge merchants, but a growing number of voices are saying not so fast.
The major card issuers were eager to put the seven-year-old lawsuit behind them, but whether the matter is truly resolved remains unclear. Visa, MasterCard and other U.S. financial institutions who were defendants in the case signed a memorandum of understanding to enter into a settlement agreement with the class of U.S. retailers who sued in 2005. That's not the same as an actual settlement and the National Association of Convenience Stores said it rejected the proposal.
"NACS does not accept this proposed settlement and we reserve the right to fight it if other class representatives do accept it," said NACS president and CEO Henry Armour. "There is plenty of time for merchants to make thoughtful decisions related to this proposed settlement. We hope and expect that, as they have the time to review it, many other merchants including class representatives will decide to reject this proposal."
In addition to the cash payment merchants would receive, another proposal settlement involves U.S. merchant class members receiving a 10 basis points reduction in credit interchange rates for an eight month period and retailers could begin adding a surcharge to recover costs associated with acceptance of Visa and MasterCard products.
Despite NACS's opposition to the proposed settlement, Visa and Mastercard were eager to move on and statements by both companies gave the impression issues related to how much they charge retailers to accept their cards had been resolved.
"We believe settling this case is in the best interests of all parties," said Visa chairman and CEO Joseph W. Saunders. "We are comfortable with the terms, which we do not anticipate will impact our current guidance. Visa is well positioned to help drive the migration to electronic payments in the United States and globally."
MasterCard general counsel and chief franchise integrity officer Noah Hanft said his company's stakeholders were best served by an amicable resolution.
"Although we have strong defenses to all claims, a settlement avoids years of litigation and uncertainties that are inherent in such cases," Hanft said. "We believe that today's settlements should resolve all issues with the merchant community."
Jason Oxman, CEO of the Electronic Transactions Association (ETA), a group representing more than 500 companies who offer electronic processing products and services, also sought to put the matter to rest.
"ETA and its member companies are pleased that all parties were able to reach agreement to end this litigation," said Oxman. "The process worked, and all concerns about interchange raised by merchants have now been fully resolved, which provides much needed certainty. Our members look forward to working with the card networks, issuers and retailers to develop the innovative new products and services that will benefit consumers and merchants and grow our economy."
That's not how the matter was viewed NACS where the response was swift and sharply worded.
"This proposed settlement allows the card companies to continue to dictate the prices banks charge and the rules that constrain the market including for emerging payment methods, particularly mobile payments," said NACS chairman Tom Robinson, president of Santa Clara, Calif.-based Robinson Oil Corp. "Consumers and merchants ultimately will pay more as a result of this agreement — without any relief in sight."
As a class plaintiff in the litigation, NACS sought a trial to establish that the anticompetitive practices engaged in by the credit card industry are illegal. NACS also pushed to end the practices engaged in by the credit card companies that don't allow for market competition.
Visa and MasterCard will continue to separately price-fix fees for thousands of their bank members, according to NACS, and that means that banks won't have to set their own prices and compete like other businesses throughout the U.S. economy. And Visa and MasterCard can continue to police how merchants price their products and stop them from showing consumers the cost consequences of using different credit cards — unless merchants drop American Express, according to a NACS statement.
The proposed settlement also sets a dangerous path for the future of the payments landscape because Visa and MasterCard will be able to use their power in the market to prevent new entrants, like PayPal, from expanding their share of the market, according to NACS.
Even if the matter is ultimately settled, a new battle looms between card issues and retailers over the use of surcharges and how they are communicated to shoppers.
"Merchants involved in this litigation demanded and were granted the power to impose a surcharge on consumers who choose to use a credit card to make a purchase," said Oxman, CEO payment processing group. "Merchants will have the ability to impose a surcharge on card purchases with no requirement to reduce prices, a power it is our hope that merchants will not exercise to the detriment of their own customers. Consumers should be vigilant to ensure that merchants treat them fairly and that they are fully informed."
Retailers could begin collecting the surcharges in 2013, setting up a new public relations battle between merchants and card issuers over whether the surcharge is a move by retailers to increase profits or simply pass through an expense they view as excessive.
Card issuer, merchant agreement unsettles some
Visa and MasterCard announced a proposed $6.6 billion settlement to a long-running dispute over the fees they charge merchants, but a growing number of voices are saying not so fast.