House Government Ops Cmte Feb 26 2026: state agencies must accept cash payments

And the follow-up hearing.

Our friends across the pond contribute excellent points in favor of cash, below. Change the Pound symbol to a Dollar sign, and it's a perfect fit.

Thursday, March 5, 2026      9:00 AM

AGENDA

HB 5340 (Rep. Paquette)
State agencies (existing): generally; acceptance of cash payments; require.

OR ANY BUSINESS PROPERLY BEFORE THIS COMMITTEE

Cash Matters here presents a distinctly anti-centrist view. It's an initiative of the International Currency Association.

https://www.cashmatters.org/blog/cash-as-a-public-good-protecting-local-economies-from-bank-fees/

Cash as a Public Good: Protecting Local Economies from Bank Fees

Frane Maroevic     |    Aug 13, 2025

For many, cash is more than a payment method. It is a lifeline, a tool for control over spending, and a driver of local economic circulation.

Consider a simple £50 note. In cash form, it can change hands dozens of times without losing value. A person repays a debt, the recipient pays the hairdresser, the hairdresser buys lunch at a café, the café owner settles an account with a restaurant, the restaurant pays its linen service. Transaction after transaction, that same £50 remains whole.

Replace that note with a credit card payment, and the picture changes dramatically. Each transaction siphons away around 3% in fees to banks or card companies.

After only 23 such transactions, a €50 payment has been whittled down to just €25 in value — the other half has leaked away from the local economy into corporate profits.

This invisible toll explains why the push towards a cashless society often aligns with the interests of those who profit from fees.

For vulnerable groups, the stakes are even higher. A 94-year-old who prefers withdrawing cash at her local branch gains something digital payments cannot match: face-to-face interaction, financial autonomy, and a tangible sense of money’s limits.

Card use, by contrast, can encourage overspending, with the true cost hidden until the monthly statement arrives.

Advocates for cash are not arguing against technology; they are defending the right to choose a payment method that sustains local economies, protects privacy, and avoids unnecessary financial leakage to global corporations.

The arithmetic is simple: with cash, value stays in your community. With cards, it flows elsewhere.

The lesson is clear: the fight for cash is a fight to keep money’s worth and power in people’s hands.

Thursday's revised agenda. Non-health items in italics.

Thursday, March 5, 2026      9:00 AM

AGENDA

HB 5340 (Rep. Paquette)
State agencies (existing): generally; acceptance of cash payments; require.

HB 5652 (Rep. BeGole)
Civil procedure: other; racing facilities and racetracks; provide immunity from nuisance claims.

OR ANY BUSINESS PROPERLY BEFORE THIS COMMITTEE